Rare ‘Skinner’ headlines winning day for Ponybet traders

It might have been a weekend wedged between two blockbuster Saturdays on the racing calendar, but the punters still showed up in force.

According to Ponybet trader Anthony Jupp, turnover dipped only slightly despite the lower headline quality of racing. That was a positive sign for bookmakers heading into one of the biggest betting weeks of the autumn carnival.

“It was an in-between Saturday with less quality racing than last week or next week,” Jupp said.

“But turnover was only slightly down, which was promising.”

The day actually began with a jolt for the traders well before the Australian meetings got rolling.

“We opened the day with a heart starter in Race 1 at Seoul,” Jupp said.

“A punter had $2,000 at $6 on Ganghan Gamma. The $1.50 pop got the prize in the end so it was a good start for us.”

Early in the day the bookmaking ledger looked like it might be a rollercoaster.

Caulfield got the better of the traders early, while Rosehill quickly swung the momentum back toward the punters.

“It was a tale of two meetings early,” Jupp explained.

“Whatever we won on the first six races at Caulfield, we gave most back on the first six races at Rosehill.”

A rare ‘skinner’ lands

Bookmakers do not often sweep the pool on a race, but when Nostra Bella led throughout to score at 150/1, Ponybet experienced the holy grail of bookmaking results.

“It’s not often you get a skinner. That’s a bookies’ term for winning everything you held on the race,” Jupp said.

“We got one when Nostra Bella led all the way. We got the lot!”

Peter Young proves pivotal

The Peter Young Stakes ended up being one of the defining betting races of the afternoon for Ponybet.

Jupp said the team were happy to keep Birdman onside while opposing two key rivals heavily supported by punters.

“We liked Birdman and were happy to keep it,” he said.

“We laid Light Infantry Man $5,000 at $4.40 and Buckaroo $500 at $2.20 three times, plus they were through a heap of multis.”

The result delivered a healthy return.

“It was a very good result. We picked up more than $10,000.”

Punters pile in late at Caulfield

The closing races at Caulfield saw punters find a couple they were keen to support.

Jupp himself had tipped Salty Pearl and Silvasista in the preview, and the betting reflected that confidence.

“I tipped them both and the punters agreed,” he said.

“We laid $10,360 at $2.20 and turned over about $20,000 on the race.”

In the final event the book had to tread carefully.

“We nursed Jigsaw late to minimise the damage. Thankfully that worked out.”

A late blow at Rosehill

There was also decent action on the last at Rosehill.

“We laid $5,000 on Modella at $3.40 and did about $10,000 on the race.”

The interstate assist

Away from the two headline meetings, the traders found a few friendly results elsewhere.

“The Gold Coast, Morphettville and especially Ascot meetings were good to us,” Jupp said.

“We even won on the outwide meetings, for a change.”

Miracle Mile closes the book

The day ended on a positive note at Menangle during the Miracle Mile, where Ponybet had positioned themselves against one runner.

“We cheered home Leap To Fame,” Jupp said.

“We laid Captain Mistress $1,000 at $3.40.”

With the ledger firmly in the black, Jupp said the focus now shifts to one of the biggest betting days of the autumn.

“A winning day for the bookie, and now we look forward to Slipper Day.”