We travelled down to Newmarket on Friday for Part 3 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sales as we were selling our Carnival Dancer filly on the Saturday morning. Unfortunately there weren't a huge number of buyers and although a few people came down to her box to have a look at her you could tell she didn't take their eye.
She did sell however, although only for a couple of bids more than the minimum, marked down to a UK bloodstock agency acting for the Chairman of the Hungarian Jockey Club. We would obviously prefer her to stay and run in Britain but we can't be choosy and at least Hungary is a recognised racing nation, having held race meetings for over 175 years. It is also good that she has been bought by someone wanting to see her become a racehorse as that is what she was bred to do.
Seat for sale on ebay if interested - just search on ebay for 'Betfair Asian'.
Won by GotAFancy? from PuntersLounge as reported here a few days ago, but he is now unable to go so an opportunity for someone who was going to go under their own steam and buy-in anyway to effectively get free accomodation and a few hundred dollars spending money.
Me ? - not enough spare cash and can't have the time off work either !
Finished 47th of 120 or so in the Hendon Mob tournament so not even points this week !
Played two 5 seat STTs on Titan, finishing 2nd in both but was briefly disconnected when heads-up in the second and was not paid out when it was over. Reported it to online support but apart from the initial hello got no reply for 15 minutes so gave up, and then couldn't get support to reply at all when logged back in. Five minutes later my balance updated to the correct amount so I left it at that.
I presume by the long period of silence that they had several people all raising the same query as me at the same time. Not a huge amount of money by anyone's standards but just goes to show how much we rely on the poker site to manage our funds correctly.
I'm not sure the much quoted adage about gambling debts not being recoverable at law applies any more but if a poker site just decided to stop trading and keep all the deposited monies how many would bother to chase them for it ?
...... as it has been a quiet poker week for me. Played 3 freerolls today - and the best result was in the 6000 runner $5k on Bet365. I was out in 462nd after the chip leader on my right raised and then called (for another 7k) my pre-flop all-in with his 9Jh v my KK - and made his straight on the turn !! Not a sparkling result but my best showing in a MTT of this size for a long time !
A good day for one player on PuntersLounge - GotaFancy? - as he won the Inside Edge / Betfair freeroll, earning a seat at the Betfair Asian Poker Tour in Singapore in November (congrats).
I was going along ok in the same game but as work commitments mean I cannot have the necessary time off, and there were no money consolation prizes, I risked all my chips for the first and last time on 27 offsuit. I found myself up against A rag, flopped a 2 but then the right result with an A on the turn ! You will notice I call it 27 offsuit, because saying 72 seems to justify playing it as a better hand !
..... last night because I don't seem to have been able to lose today, but without winning much, and at least a Euro Lottery win of £56 million would have got me some real money !
I turned a £5 free bet on Betfair into a profit of £16 with a couple of place only bets on the racing at Newmarket and then won the only two $5 STTs I played - a 5 seat on Titan and a 9 seat on Poker Stars.
I had planned to play the APAT MTT on Poker Stars but then realised I was $2.50 short of the $22 entry so played the STT to win the extra rather than mess about trying to deposit with Neteller, which I find a real pain. The win now puts me on $36.50 so I can play next month !
By the way I fibbed about not playing the Euro Millions Lottery last night because I did - and I won !!! £6.30 for matching one number with both the 'lucky stars' - and the jackpot is £64 million next Friday !
Sponsored by www.free-money.co.uk there will be an exclusive $1000 freeroll on Betfair every other month for participating members of Punters Lounge who have an active blog and who put certain links to other sites on their blog.
Full details can be found on the Punters Lounge forum and if you sign up mention that you read about it here.
Do me a few favours though :-
1. Don't sign up to Punters Lounge just because of the freeroll - play an active part, participate and have a good look around.
2. Don't create a blog to just sit as a link to the other sites and nothing else - tell the world about yourself, or just your poker self, or just get things off your chest. Anything but leave a blank space !
3. Don't leave it until the last minute and expect to get in. Now is ideal as you have two months to get generally involved first.
4. Have a look at the linked sites - see over to the right (from Punters Lounge to Free Casino Chips inclusive).
The first freeroll was tonight and I finished in 4th place, with the top 5 being paid (plus one bounty prize). I put a huge amount of pressure on myself to finish in the money because the Mrs, AvonGirl had to sit out when she joined my table. Betfair don't allow us to play on the same table because we share the same internet connection and could be colluding - little do they know that we practically live on different floors of the house and never talk to each other when playing. Pot luck really because if I'd been moved to her table it would have been me stuck on the sidelines.
So on that basis I was pleased with 4th, but truthfully disappointed because shortly after Avon was forced out I had built up a healthy lead, and then after dropping back I lead again briefly when down to the final four.
I would have a moan at my AK being beaten by the eventual winner's Q 10 (suited) but I got lucky against him earlier when my Jx caught a J on the turn v his 55.
So in summary - take a look around Punters Lounge and sign up if you like what you see and are prepared to become an active member. Then get your blog going, with the links, and wait for the next freeroll. Don't leave it until the last minute or you will not get in - and prepare yourself for a tough game in the next and every freeroll !
Played on Full Tilt for the first time last night in the Hendon Mob Forum League Tournament and it has a nice feel to it.
The Hendon Mob League game was the second of 26, with your best ten finishes contributing to your position in the overall league. $10 + $1 entry (133 in last night) with money for the top 18, points for the top 30 and $10 and 5 extra points for knocking out any of 'the' Hendon Mob.
After playing steadily I finished in 27th when my AQ was beaten by AJ (all-in pre-flop, J on turn). That gave me 4 points and 49th place in the league !
One slightly crazy hand today - and the easiest money I ever made out of AA :-
Playing a 5 seat STT on Betfred and was chip leader of the final three, holding 2300 approx, when was dealt AA from the small blind - think the blinds were 100-200. The short stack went all in for about 1100 so I called and amazingly the BB raised all-in so it cost me another 500 or so to call.
Is it AA v AA v KK ?
No, the short stack had AK - so his all-in from under the gun is understandable - but the BB has KQos which makes his raise completely ridiculous.
Nothing came on the board to help anyone so I won the tournament there and then.
Did the Sunday night usual and tried to play too many games at once - two started at 8pm and two at 8.30. Had to concentrate on the one I'd paid to play but in the end they all suffered ......
When I first got interested in horse racing (aged 9 so I was far too young to bet), and for about 20 years after, I preferred the National Hunt (jump racing) season to the Flat season because the horses tended to be old favourites who returned year after year. The sprint handicappers would race for several seasons but the real flat stars were packed off to stud, usually at the end of their second season, so you did not have quite the same attachment to them.
Now I much prefer flat racing because of the breeding aspect and today was an example of why ........
I can't remember if there are posts on here about how bad my memory is, but my memory tells me that the first horse I personally backed in a betting shop was a sprinter named Ahonoora and he won (of course !). Great things were not necessarily expected of Ahonoora when he went to stud in Ireland but he far exceeded any initial expectations by becoming sire of Derby winner Dr Devious, 2000 guineas winner Don't Forget Me, the successful sire Indian Ridge and is a leading broodmare sire (his daughters breed successful racehorses).
It was after Ahonoora went to stud that I realised the extra enjoyment and interest to be had from flat racing was to follow the offspring of your favourite horses, and then theirs in turn, etc.
In the final crop of Ahonoora (he died in Australia in 1989) was a horse owned by Sir Robert Sangster and trained by Peter Chapple-Hyam named Chaddleworth. He won his maiden race over 6 furlongs at Newbury as a 2 year old and was then injured, returning at 3 to run well enough in the Craven Stakes at Newmarket to be a leading fancy for the 2000 guineas but he finished in midfield behind the great Zafonic. The Craven and Guineas are run over a mile so he was stepped back to 6f in a three horse race at Newbury but was injured again when finishing second. He returned in the Abernant over 6f at Newmarket at the age of 4, before finally winning again on 2000 guineas day but in a Listed race over 7f at Haydock. He then ran without further success at York, Royal Ascot (in the Royal Hunt Cup), Tipperary and Goodwood. Apart from his final race at Goodwood and his first run at Newbury as a 2 year old I was present (mostly with my wife) at all of his runs so he gave me a lot of fun and interest and was the reason we bought our first broodmare (who was already in foal with the original Runadrum).
After producing Runadrum, the mare Runabay's next foal was a colt by Chaddleworth which we named Baychester. Baychester went into training with Garry Woodward and ran three times but without beating one horse home, bless him ! His first run was in a maiden over 1 mile for two-year-olds at York on 6th October 1999 and he finished last of the field of 26 - beaten 59 lengths by the winner, Miss Lorilaw. The Racing Post said of Baychester that day - "started slowly, always tailed off" - which summed up his performance.
The winner of that race, Miss Lorilaw, was also having her first run and won once more over a mile and a half in a Listed race at Newbury the following year. Like Chaddleworth, as a Listed winner she was entitled to a place at stud (although she also ran respectably in Group races) and her second foal is a colt by Desert Prince, named Victorian Prince.
Victorian Prince ran for the first time today (7th October), winning a maiden over 1 mile for two-year-olds at York - and finishing in last place of the field of 13, beaten 42.5 lengths, was a horse (Steel Silk, said in the Racing Post to have been "slowly into stride, always behind, tailed off") in training with Garry Woodward !
One thing I would just say is that Garry is a more than capable trainer given (like every trainer) the right ammunition. Although we have no connection now with his yard, I think I can promise you that Steel Silk is a far better racehorse than Baychester, will not be last home in his next two races and I would expect him to end up winning a race or two.
Played in the PP Grand Prix II final sponsored by Betfair last night at the BiGSLiCK cardroom in Purley / South Croydon. This time I played as solid as I could and was beaten by the cards, not by me pushing a self-destruct button as it was in the APAT tournament.
Started with 2500 chips (30 minute blinds) and after two hands I was down to 1900, after twice trying to play Ax suited. Don't particularly remember any hands after that up to the first break at 90 minutes but I was up a little to 2000.
The only hand I remember up to the second break was raising the BB from the SB and calling his 99 all-in with my K-10 suited. By the river I thought I needed a K to make top pair or a J for a straight, completely forgetting that a 10 made me a good enough pair also, and a 10 duly came. That helped me to 3500 at the break.
Then the one funny hand (other than one when I was staring into space because I had folded in my head, but not in reality !). I had lost track of the blinds and when I thought the dealer was asking me for my 800 BB - and I gave it to him - he was actually asking if I wanted to call ! As I had been doing from the BB I just put my guard on my cards without looking at them until I had to and then realised the real BB had gone all-in, probably because I had just limped in ! Fully expecting to see 35os and cursing the waste of 800 of my 3500 chips I was surprised to see I was holding 77 - so made the call, faced AK and doubled up to 7400.
Then came the move to my second and last table. I raised to 5000 under the gun with AQh and was called all-in by the BB to 4000 with 69c. The flop came Q5x so I am further ahead, then an 8 on the turn, and someone tempts fate by saying a 7 would make him the straight, so sure enough the river is a 7 !!!
So now I am the BB for 1200 with 10 3 os. Three seats away goes all-in, so I hum and hah and fold.
So now I am the SB for 600 and get 55, so I call the attempt (by the 69c player two hands ago) to put me all-in and he has a respectable AJ. The flop is 8 9 10 and the turn is a 7 for his J high straight. J on the river would give me a split pot, but it is not to be, and I am out in 16th. My nemesis went on to finish second.
I got to meet old friends and new from PuntersLounge and was at least the highest placed PL representative. I got a shirt to mark that I had played and several free glasses of coke until the free bar ran out and a free buffet and a four hour journey home at 2am to make sure I was back for work this morning ! The PokerPlayer guys were also good company and I hope to qualify for the next one.
Our mare Flo is in foal - good girl that she is - so we hope for a healthy, correct (all four legs pointing in the right direction) colt foal next year by first season sire, Danbird.
Danbird is a son of Danehill, who is also sire of Dansili, the sire of Rail Link which won today's Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe so it is the sire line of the moment. Danehill himself died a couple of years ago so his sons are going to grow in popularity as stallions themselves. This is the Danzig branch of Northern Dancer so they get no better in my view.
Flo's yearling is by Carnival Dancer so this is the Sadler's Wells branch of Northern Dancer. Sadler's Wells has been a lot slower to have a serious stallion son but there are more than high hopes for Montjeu and Galileo. Both stand in Ireland and are more than a little out of our price range so we settled for Carnival Dancer - a first season sire when the yearling filly was conceived and this year's foal is a full brother. The filly is the better put together and will be a bargain for someone at the sales at the end of October.
Our other yearling is still struggling with life at night on her own so will now be staying at home. The trauma of being orphaned so young is obviously still with her and needs a lot more time and patience. Don't expect to see her on a racecourse until she is at least three but do expect to see a goat or sheep in close proximity !
The paragraph above originally ended this but after posting I checked the rest of today's results from Longchamp. If I have any regular readers with good memories they may recall that Carnival Dancer has a half-brother called Desert Lord, and he won today's sprint race the Prix de l'Abbaye at 25-1, and yet again I let it run unbacked !!!!!
