Betting shop mug punters

I popped into a Coral shop today to do a football bet. Newcastle (1-2) and Sheffield Wednesday (4-6) for a £100 double. I had checked their odds on oddschecker.com beforehand. After scribbling the details on a betting slip I slid it and the dosh across the counter in the direction of the bloke standing behind it. He gazed at it then at a fixed odds football coupon for today's matches.

It transpired that the shop odds on those matches, per the coupon, were 2-5 and 8-11. That left me confused. "How can the same company offer different odds on the same event?" I asked him. "Does it matter?" was his curious response. I resisted the urge to call him a thick kent and instead explained to him that the returns for a winning bet was at least 10% less. He gave a "so what?" look. I responded by asking him whether he'd just shrug if Coral paid him 10% less in wages next week. Naturally, I didn't place the bet but did grab a coupon on the way out. It was clear when comparing those odds with their online prices that they are taking the piss out of their High Street customers, and after a little research, every other bookie with a presence on the ground are also taking theirs for mugs.

8-11 is better than 4-6 so if you,d back shef weds at the bookies you,d be better off, maybe they had taken bets which affect the odds between the time you looked online and the time you attended the shop?

Yeah, got into a knot there. Wednesday were 4-6 in the shop, 8-11 online. Had the bet won, online was a 159.09 profit, shop £141.82. The overround in the shops is sky high. Of course, many punters like to do four or more teams to win accumulators, that's when the differences really become amplified percentage wise.

Here's a good article that demonstrates they're all at it. http://www.bettingwebsites.org/blog/...ne-bookmakers/

They are exploiting the gullible and the ignorant and those for whatever reason can't place bets online.

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Originally Posted by Organ Morgan.

Here's a good article that demonstrates they're all at it. http://www.bettingwebsites.org/blog/...ne-bookmakers/

They are exploiting the gullible and the ignorant and those for whatever reason can't place bets online.

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i dont bet but it doesn't surprise me in the least, they are there to make money and despite the glossy Ray Winstone ads they want to get people hooked, tbh its so easy to bet online or with your mobile etc i,m surprised that high street bookies are still thriving

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Organ Morgan.

Here's a good article that demonstrates they're all at it. http://www.bettingwebsites.org/blog/...ne-bookmakers/

They are exploiting the gullible and the ignorant and those for whatever reason can't place bets online.

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All punters are mugs. I placed my last bet in 1975. When I called in to collect my winnings on the horses the manager said I'd made some mistake on the slip or something like that and he refused to pay out. I think I was due about a tenner.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Organ Morgan.

Here's a good article that demonstrates they're all at it. http://www.bettingwebsites.org/blog/...ne-bookmakers/

They are exploiting the gullible and the ignorant and those for whatever reason can't place bets online.

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Most people who use the physical shops are there for the buzz and usually spend more too, and invariably there is a pub nearby :biggrin: