In case you hadn’t noticed, it’s the last day of the proper NH season, and before we all start the huffing and puffing again in October, I thought I should seek counselling from Madame Arcati, whose reputation for accurate soothsaying can only be matched by her fees. I asked her to relieve some of my…
Not actually Posted – but sent by email
What ho,- Many of you might have heard I was taking The Hon hill-walking in Tuscany this week. In fact, we swerved it because of two family deaths, an unsteady pater, a filthy weather report, and an inability to agree on an itinerary. So, instead, we headed off to Tenerife, having acquired a taste for…
Aintree Grand National Meeting: Day 3 THE GRAND NATIONAL
It happens pretty well every weekend. Of the half dozen or so races that I explore to suggest and sometimes select a winner, I inevitably – if only as a matter of statistical probability – get it right. Sometimes, of course, you have days like today. Days when one forensically examines the possibilities and then,…
Aintree Grand National Meeting: Day 2
It was not the worst of days for us, but I would have thought it was pretty awful for Hendo. Of his four runners, his only winner seemed constantly surprised to see a hurdle, and the other three all finished in the bottom half of their fields. The fact that Sir Gino won despite his…
Aintree Grand National Meeting: Day 1
One of the subscribers asked what courses might be considered similar to Aintree. The straight answer would be Newcastle, Ayr, Doncaster, Ffos Las, Haydock, Newbury, Wetherby, Uttoxeter, and Worcester. Left-handed and reasonably flat. The more worldly-wise amongst you will know that there is no comparative course. At the Pardubice, for example, the fences might once…
The Golf Majors: The Masters Tips from Sandy Lane
Please note that bets must be placed by 1.30 pm on Thursday. At last, a tournament in which the cream almost always rises to the top. Augusta National provides a massive test of every professional golfer’s mettle. It may be the most beautiful and best manicured piece of golfing property on the globe, but it…
Napoleon declared: I have only one counsel for you – be Master
Having stayed up to watch Valdero and the stuttering victory of Akshay Bhatia – no, me neither – over Denny McCarthy, I started to think seriously about the mental impact such games must have on the players. Yeah, sure, it’s what they do, I get that, but to be so totally focused as McCarthy was…
Farewell Gentle Coz.
It’s been a lousy week, made far worse today by the unexpected news that the 80-year-old widow of my late Coz was tragically killed yesterday in a freak accident in a pub car park. Do not smile… such things can happen to the Kneesup clan when they least expect it. I had known her since…
PGA Tour: The Valero Texas Open – bets on by 1:00pm
Oh Me, Oh My! What a roller-coaster ride we have had in recent weeks. It started with our headline selection, Scottie Scheffler’s imperious triumph at the Players. It was followed by our man Cameron Young’s dramatic implosion (but with an e-w payout) in the final round of the Valspar. Next came the Houston Open and…
Content to be thought foolish and stupid.
I seem to spend more and more time confusing April Fools’ Day with the rest of the month and year. I must believe that some 30% of all the stories I read are fake. For example, surely this selection of today’s headlines, none of which I have gone to any lengths to find, cannot all…
The lost weekend – well parts of Friday anyway!
Be in no doubt that when the chips are down and all appears lost, Corney and Barrow can fill the void with a small cheering glass. Thus, a few of the helpers (seven and two liggers) who usually make the whole Lambourn Open Day spin along gathered to commiserate over the abandoned day. A little…
I don’t know about Good – its certainly a very Busy Friday
I was blissfully unaware of the televised racing from my usual lenten posture, which I traditionally adopt at this time of year. Probably weak from 40 days of fasting, I could only see torrential rain and various other Godly visitations through the sackcloth, ashes and palm fronds. Among the plagues visited on us has been…
PGA Tour: The Houston Open
Sandy Lane previews this week’s PGA Tour event, The Texas Children’s Houston Open in Texas Please note that bets must be placed by 12.20 on Thursday. Speaking of children, I nearly choked on my Cheerios on Monday when I read what Cameron Young, one of our selections to win the Valspar Championship in Florida, had said…
A flat start to The Flat
Doesn’t life change rapidly? Last week, the supposed greatest racing festival, today is the start of the Flat season. Yesterday, we went off to Wallingford to see Chitty Chitty Bang Bang done by the local players – which was fab and, in places, rather surprisingly sexy – or maybe I’m just a sad old git….
Cheltenham – for what it’s worth
SUMMARY Having unjustly gained a negative reputation for being part of the Pandemic problem, perhaps impacting local and regional community support, Cheltenham has managed to lose racing fans through a combination of poor event planning, weak and/or arrogant customer relations, aggressive price marketing, and a race schedule, which has managed to engineer an uncompetitive and,…
PGA Tour: The Valspar Championship
Sandy Lane previews this week’s PGA Tour event, the Valspar Championship in Florida. Please note that bets must be placed by 11.30 am on Thursday. Wow, the climax of The Players Championship at Sawgrass last week was something to behold. Scottie Scheffler, our headline selection, treated golf lovers to an imperious bogey-free final round of…
Saturday – a time for quiet reflection
As we seem to be surrounded by retired football managers all screaming, “Gitonmason” (I’m interpreting the accent), I too want to give a loud “Oooochaarrr” for the wisely invested Kneesup hours, which led to today’s results showing a 90.17pt profit. Over the four days, we recommended bets totalling 147.5 points, which delivered an ROI of…
Cheltenham Day 4
A very smiley girl appeared at my breakfast table this morning, clutching at some of my clothing that she’d found on her travels. “You bounder and cad”, I hear you say, but wait, the Hon was close at hand; nothing untoward was afoot, and even coffee and a warmed croissant were offered, or a glass…
Cheltenham Festival Day 3
DAY 3: THURSDAY 14 MARCH 13:30 THE TURNERS NOV. CHASE (G1) 2m 4f Chase ZANAHIYR has had a good season so far with two decent graded runs before converting to Chasing. His debut saw him run into Fact To File, and his poor jumping didn’t aid his cause – but he did have Minella Cocooner…
The PGA Tour and Sandy Lane Masters Sawgrass
Greetings! It’s time again to enjoy the unofficial ‘5th Major’, the Players Championship at the iconic TPC Stadium course in Sawgrass, with its infamous Par 3 17th island hole. Previous winners have ranked highly on their accurate play and been good scramblers and putters. The key required stat is Strokes Gained Approach. Scottie Scheffler, the…
CHELTENHAM DAY 2
DAY 2: WEDNESDAY 13 MARCH 13:30 THE GALLAGHER (BARING BINGHAM) NOV. HDL (G1) 2m 5f Hurdle If you swerve HANDSTANDS and THE GREY MAN on trends grounds, and you think the probable winner, BALLYBURN is too short, then you might want to consider either PREDATOR’S GOLD or MERCUREY. The former has recently run second in…
Cheltenham Festival Day 1
As of 8:30 am on Monday, the ground was Soft all over, and the Cross Country was Heavy, Soft in places. Some drizzle was possible on Monday. Showers are forecast for the early hours and into the morning on Tuesday (3-4mm). This will be Soft, sticky ground and beginning to dry. Champion Day – Tuesday,…
LAMBOURN – WHERE THE OSCARS ARE ACTUALLY DECIDED
It’s been a week when as much caught the ear as the eye. The Chancellor (how quickly we forget he once saw himself as The PM) said in his Jam Tomorrow and The Day After deceitful Budget speech: “We believe that in a free society the money you earn doesn’t belong to the government. It…
Who is going to pick up the Palmer D’Or?
Sandy Lane previews this week’s PGA Tour event, The Arnold Palmer Invitational in Florida. Please note that bets must be placed by 12.45 on Thursday. Another week, another 100-1 plus winner in the most extraordinary start to a PGA Tour season that your writer can ever remember. Full marks, though, to Austin Eckroat, who played superbly…
Raceweb’s Cheltenham Festival: The Stats Pack – 20 STATS YOU NEVER KNEW
The following statistics, trends, and anomalies, call it what you will – these numbers – provide a potentially useful insight into possible Festival race outcomes. The numbers are facts, but as a dear friend once remarked after Mon Mome’s National victory, your statistic on French-bred National runners winning isn’t wrong; it’s simply that there are…
How did Jeffrey do it?
My hero, Jeffrey Joseph Bernard, of sainted fame, could any day after 6:00 pm do a bottle of vodka, consume a decent dinner, talk racing happily for hours, drink claret, smoke a packet of fags, go to Grouchos, pull a barmaid and be tucked up in bed by 2:00 am. I tried this yesterday without…
The 2024 Cheltenham Festival – The Kneesup Overview
Whatever happens, please ensure that you only bet NRNB. Also remember that if there is a non-runner in Doubles, for example, the bet becomes a Single. Thus an 11 bet Yankee (1x 4, 4×3, 6×2) with a non-runner becomes a Patent (1×3 – 6×2 – 3×1 with 1 stake returned). Champion Day – Tuesday, March…
PGA Tour: The Cognizant Classic at the Palm Beaches
Greetings Be cognisant (why do the Yankees have to mess up the King’s English?) of the fact that today’s date only occurs every four years. It’s a big deal for Grandpas like me, who can raise a glass to their leapling descendants. Our Arthur (12, allegedly) is one of this exclusive group – there are…
Parliamentary duplicity, some Grand National tips, and a frictionless potato peeler.
IT WAS THE WORST OF TIMES… As luck (entirely the wrong word for what transpired) would have it, I decided at about 6:30 on Wednesday night to see how the Commons was getting on with what passes for political debate these days, and have a gander at the Opposition Day SNP motion in action. It’s…
The Mexican Open
Sandy Lane has sent a note, along the lines that the Weights of the Grand National or even Fontwell on a soaking Thursday were considerably more interesting than this weekend’s PGA offering – The Mexican Open – and that he was not sure that this event was the “full enchilada”. So I thought I would…
Sunday Golf, Irish racing, Secret shredding
With not much doing on the social front, attention has turned to resolving some issues in the office – such as a mountain of papers. The Hon is on shredding duty, as she is rightly concerned that information is power, and in the days of paper recycling and special bins, a walk around Notting Hill…
Cancel Cheltenham – we’re all going to Bicester Village to buy a hat.
It has been a busy week, which I have covered elsewhere, and albeit I have slightly recovered from a week full of shocks and Valentine’s needs and planning, I am still reeling from Ascot’s appointment of a style guru who will explain to me how to put on a top hat. Meanwhile, the Ascot PR…
Green Space, White Space, Grey Lies, a black day.
I went with The Hon the other day to the funeral of Norman Thomas, a proper traditional country farmer. He was three times larger than life; he shot well, hunted hard, farmed profitably (largely thanks to land development), drank prodigiously, partied noisily, and loved horses and racing. (His daughter worked for us and was a…
Valentine’s Day and Ascot’s Common Dress Sense
This relentless outpouring of love and affection is doing my head in! My world is divided into 300 days of relative calm, sunny uplands where the green shoots etc etc… It is often a time of relative prosperity, if not in fact, then certainly in the impressions surrounding one. A day at Ascot, a trip…
PGA TOUR – THE GENESIS INVITATIONAL
Greetings from Sandy Lane in Sunny Barbados Caramba! Another 100-1 winner (Nick Taylor) in Phoenix last week. Thankfully, we escaped with minor injuries, courtesy of Sam Burns (3rd) and Cameron Young (8th). This week, the show moves on to the Genesis Invitational, staged at the swanky Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles. Here,…
Weather aside – there’s quite a lot going on, sportswise.
Rain, snow, sleet, plagues of frogs or locusts, we shouldn’t be surprised, although Thursday in Scottsdale did slightly bamboozle me and most of the Koreans on the tour, who all seemed shy of the appropriate wet weather gear. No such thing as bad weather, dear, just inappropriate clothing was what Nanny was often heard to…
THE PGA TOUR: Waste Management Phoenix Open
Greetings From the classical Pebble Beach courses in North California, we head off to the Arizona desert for the Waste Management Phoenix Open at Scottsdale. Played out in front of the most raucous (700,000ish) bunch of fans over the four days, this event provides a different set of challenges to those played to date this…
FOR A BRIEF MOMENT THERE, I THOUGHT I WAS IN TROUBLE
In the back of my mind resides many trivial racing stats. I trot them out periodically for a freshen-up and a bit of a brush-down because they’re going for a gallop quite soon, and you need to know that alles ist in Ordnung, as they used to say in Stalag Luft VII after a dodgy…
Between teenage killers, corruption in the Town Hall, barmy illegals, HMRC and the bookmakers – what could possibly go wrong?
My recent observations on the ferality of much of the infrastructure of the departmentalised Civil Service, with specific reference to HMRC, struck a personal chord with one reader. He/She/They wrote: “I have been hounded for doing nothing illegal, for paying the agreed tax in place at the time, and paying it promptly, and have been…
THE PGA TOUR – THE AT&T PRO-AM AT PEBBLE BEACH
As you know, our correspondent Sandy Lane is permanently based in Barbados, where he busies himself on a range of important Island matters. His Christmases may all have just arrived at once, with the news that the PGA Tour and Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. (BTMI) have revealed a long-term Official Marketing Partnership this Monday that…
The Farmers Insurance Open
The Farmers Insurance Open has become one of the most exciting regular-season PGA Tour events on the schedule, thanks in no small part to the host course, Torrey Pines, and Tiger Woods‘ incredible winning record there, including his epic 2008 U.S. Open triumph. We’ll have to wait a little longer to see Tiger tee it…
On a Progress to Worcestershire – Which given the paucity of decent racing is probably a good thing
I’m really not that interested in AW racing, and even less so after the outburst of Martin Cruddace this week. Cruddace, a name that smacks of Nominative Determinism, runs Arena Racing, and this week, he accused figures in racing who continually called for greater transparency on racecourses’ media rights income as being “economically illiterate” and…
There is nothing like an election to see Crusades launched
On Thursday, I stumbled across David Davis delivering a speech on BBC Parliament. He was standing behind IDS with Jacob RM in close attendance and several other senior Tory bodies looking intense. Across the chamber, John McDonnell was getting ready to sound sensible and to talk plainly and effectively. The House was far from packed,…
WELL DONE SANDY
Having just missed out on Week 1 of the new PGA season, I backed Sandy’s Sony Hawaiian selections last week on Betfair Exchange. A thrilling “nip and tuck game” led to a three-way playoff, but my nerve failed me and I sacrificed my potential 200 pt profit and “Greened Up” by selling Byeong Hun An…
The PGA Tour – The Sony Open
Sandy Lane – our man in Barbados – writes: Aloha to One and All! Our first foray into the 2024 PGA Tour at last week’s The Sentry proved to be bang on track until the 69th hole. Here, Jordan Spieth, one of the longer-priced of our ‘Big Five’ picks, who had just taken a share…
Warning: Some of this content may trigger anxiety, panic attacks or boredom
Issues such as a sense of entitlement, lack of charm or people skills, and the realities of living in a world where people do not always like each other, are some of the things that might be covered in these notes. Other phrases to cause distress might include Bad Luck (despite the jockey dropping his…
A Very Happy New Year to all and some very brief tips.
What Ho, I have just returned from a very splendid 24 hours of quietly understated all-round excellence. I have drunk well, eaten brilliant food, sat in the company of kind and charming friends, been cossetted and pampered, and generally come back feeling loved and needed. What better way is there to start a New Year? I…
The 2023 Crackers Report – and ITV Racing tips
If you can, spend a few moments on YouTube or Racing TV catching up on the two Irish Christmas racing festivals – especially Leopardstown. Jeepers, they have some excellent animals. Alternatively, look up the last races of these runners who make up my go-to list for winners next March. They all ran and won over…
There’s nothing like a £5 gift – and I mean nothing!
I thought it was just a bad dream – but then I realised it was probably more serious. Was it possible that I have a multiple personality disorder? Many of you had probably already considered it but, being kind souls, had shelved the idea. Yesterday, however, it came to light. I started growling at The Hon,…
The problem with the Interweb – I went down the rabbit hole for 200 minutes, and they were lost forever.
It started as a simple question. “Would…” asked the Hon, “,,, an air-fryer be useful? As a Christmas present?” The mistake I made was to treat that as a reason for research. I brushed off my inner Kipling and his Six Good Serving Men – the mantra of all good researchers and journalists. I keep…