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The Cheltenham Festival - Will You Have a Flutter?


© Photo Healy Racing

The Cheltenham Festival begins on the 14th March. The excitement is building: horses are being put through their final preparations on the gallops, jockeys are being booked for rides and anticipation is high for the four day Festival. Many thousands of racing fans will make the trip to the Cotswolds while others will watch from afar but, one thing is for sure, they will all have a bet on their fancies for the big races.

Betting on horses began way back in the reign of Richard the Lionheart (1189—99). It was during this time that the first recorded racing purse was offered; £40 for a race run over three miles. Betting on the outcome of a horse race is incredibly exciting, regardless of whether it is profitable or not. The exhilaration of shouting at your horse when it nears the front is incredible and if it passes the post first, especially on the nod, even a £5 win will make you feel rich.

With the arrival of online and telephone betting, it's popularity has increased with men and women alike. Some people bet on horse racing more as a science by studying form, the state of the ground, weather conditions, how the horse is behaving in the parade ring; all these can make a difference to how it will perform. However, for others, the act of placing a bet is for pure fun and the pleasure of having a runner, chosen only, perhaps, because it is a grey or the silks are an attractive colour.

Betting Offers For Cheltenham

There will be many Cheltenham betting offers available, such as cash back and best odds guaranteed. It is worth noting that, should you place your bet in advance of the race day and the horse is unable to run, then Bet365 and Paddy Power are now offering a ‘NON RUNNER NO BET’ for the all races at Cheltenham. Bet365 are also offering a ‘BEST ODDS GUARANTEED’ for all races; this offer expires on 14/03/2017.

If you fancy signing up with Betway, they are currently offering to new customers only, an incredible 33/1 for the favourite, Douvan, to win the Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase; the offer expires on 15/03/2017. It is also worth looking at Totesport who are offering bonuses - not just at Cheltenham - such as a '3 x the Odds for One Winner on all Lucky 15s’. This applies to only getting one winner on selected multiple bets.

Boylesports are offering a ‘Faller Free Bet insurance’, meaning that their clients will receive a free bet, up to a maximum of £25, if their horse is brought down, unseats or falls at the first or last obstacle during Cheltenham and all UK races over the jumps. Betway is continuing its ‘outsider insurance’, on selected races; if your horse finishes second behind a horse who’s SP is greater than 10/1, your losing bet will be refunded as a free one - maximum £25.

Whatever our tactics are for placing a bet, it all comes back to the same thing - excitement and love of the sport. Have a great Cheltenham and, hopefully, a profitable one too.