I read the SBC’s guide to getting started with betting tipsters with keen interest when it was released last week. You may wonder why, when I’ve been following tipsters for too many years I care to remember (blimey, I’m getting old!), that such a guide would capture my attention. It’s because I can still relate to the information it provides very closely, and even now I still wish I’d had access to such info when I was starting out.
The ‘Step’ that chimed most bells with me was the second, which relates to setting up betting banks. I reckon a failure to adhere to the advice given around this section is why so many punters don’t last the course when they start backing the advice of tipsters. Not the only reason, but the most common.
The reason I say this is that I have spoken to many bettors and SBC members over the years who have outlined their ‘portfolios’ to me and wonder why they’re not making money. I can honestly say that around 75% of them astonish me when they give answers to my questions around betting banks. They are consistently and acutely underfunded for the stakes they’re playing at.
I’ve been there myself when starting out. I pay for a tipster, I expect him to be good. Therefore, goes the flawed logic, I don’t need a big betting bank. What happens? A few losers, I lose my bottle, reduce stakes and fail to win as much as I should when the guy tips a winner or two. I then up my stakes on the back of those two winners, they lose, I reduce my stakes again…and so it went on. Yup, been there, done that!
Why not read the SBC review, digest all it tells me about historical losing runs, strike rates, average odds, etc., and then go with the bank they recommend? Experience has taught me it’s much better this way, both in the sense of setting yourself up to be in this game for the long term (which allows you to build and make more money over time) and for coping mentally. I reckon there’s nothing more stressful in betting than staking inappropriately. Losing runs are never nice when controlled within a ‘safe’ betting environment. They’re unbearable if you’re staking too much, and will likely lead to you giving up completely having lost a fair whack along the way.
I remember following one particular service that specialised in long odds horse racing selections. I was using what amounted to a 40 point betting bank and guess what? 40 points weren’t enough! If I’d followed the SBC recommendation I would have split my funds up into the 200 points that were far more appropriate for a service that inevitably had regular losing runs as a result of the odds they were tipping at. At that time I wasn’t great with losing runs anyway. Suffice to say, I lost a fair amount of money and never recovered, despite the fact the service itself had a very good 12 months. I’d paid to follow a tipster during a very successful spell, and somehow lost money!
It really is easy – read the reviews, analyse the historical performance, take note of previous losing runs and then set up the bank that is recommended when you subscribe to your tipster. Why take unnecessary risks? Follow the advice – believe me, it will pay off.
I’m away from home this week (and haven’t struck a bet since Sunday) so will post up the review of March next week, bringing all figures up to date.
Until then…
