25th September 2008

AFL GRAND FINAL

TAB Sportsbet looking to eclipse the 2007 record for holds on a sporting event with customers already investing heavily on this season's Grand Final with over 50 individual markets now open.

Currently holding $1m on the match and still a long way to go to go past the 2007 record of $8.3m but interest is high on an all Melbourne Grand Final nad indications are the record will go by 2.30pm Saturday.

Money currently running 3:1 in favour of Geelong without any single large wager for the Cats. Biggest bet $25000 @ $1.45 with plenty of $5,000 bets taken and that price has remained constant since Sunday afternoon.

One customer is a Lance (Buddy) Franklin fan as they have placed $20000 @ $10 on him to win the Norm Smith Medal for best on ground performance Saturday. Gary Ablett ($7), Joel Selwood ($13), Brad Sewell ($23) and Andrew Mackie ($31) are the next in popularity.

NRL

Cronulla v Melbourne

Public shifting towards the Sharks with them firming from $2.50 into $2.30 and Melbourne on the drift from $1.50 to $1.60. Biggest bet so far $8,000 @ $2.35 taken this morning on Cronulla. Luckily had a $15,000 bet on Melbourne @ $1.50 before last night's judiciary decision.

Manly v Warriors

Apart from a bet of $250,000 @ $1.42 on Manly taken Tuesday money is running approx 2:1 in their favour. Some more support for Warriors today without anything large.

Premiership betting

Customers have completely shunned Melbourne, who have drifted from $1.90 on Sunday to be $2.75 this afternoon. Only bet of note was $9000 @ $2.15 on Monday but very hard to lay since.

Manly were as much as $3.25 and attracted a bet of $50,000 at that price on Sunday. They have firmed each day this week and are now $2.40 to take the premiership.

Smaller punters want both roughies here with Cronulla $7.50 into $5 and Warriors $7 into $6.50.

24th July 2008

NRL

NRL Round 19 at TAB Sportsbet will go down in the record books after 2 matches achieved holds of $1m+. Manly v Parramatta last Friday night held $1.13m while Melbourne v St George Illawarra held $1.44m, both without Multis.

A distinct trend towards betting as late as possible was noticeable on both matches. On Monday night a total of over $500k was bet in the hour before kickoff.

TAB Sportsbet customers are still cashed up after the upsets in round 18.

This week has been a little slow with major interest coming for Nth Qld +12.5 in their match against Parramatta on Friday night despite the fact their losing streak has stretched to double figures. Bets of $22500 @ $1.90 along with $5850 and $5500 @ $1.85 now see the visitors into $1.80 at the line.

Internal dramas at Canberra may have prompted punters to look away from them this week with Gold Coast attracting support at the +8.5 point line. Bets of $10000, $7700 and $5500 (twice) have been placed on the Titans but they remain at the $1.90 quote.

Newcastle welcome back captain Danny Buderus and Steve Simpson this week against Souths, who will be without Isaac Luke (suspended). The Bunnies went down to Wests Tigers last week all but ending their final 8 aspirations. The Knights had a $25,000 bet on them at $1.40 to continue an impresssive record, at home, against Souths.

The tightest betting match of the round is on Sunday at SFS when Sydney Roosters host Manly. The Sea Eagles have beaten the Roosters in the last 6 matches between the 2 with the Chooks last victorious at the SFS back in 2003. The match was originally priced at $1.90 your pick but all the money is for Manly including one bet of $22,500 and they are now into $1.85 and Sydney Roosters $1.95.

One astute punter has placed $1300 on the Draw at 80 minutes at the juicy odds of $23. Gutsy!

St George Illawarra have to overcome a losing streak of 7 when they meet Bulldogs on Monday night. One bet of $10,000 on the Dragons -7.5 @ $1.90 shows confidence in the Red and Whites. Dogs supporters will be hoping Sonny Bill Williams steps out this week after being a late withdrawl last week against the Warriors.

In premiership betting one loyal Warriors supporter placed $1000 on them @ $101 to win the comp. Thank you!

AFL

Best backed side so far this week has been Richmond who are $1.83 into $1.62 against Brisbane on Saturday night. The move was led by a bet of $20000.

Fremantle climbed off the bottom of the ladder with a win last week and TAB Sportsbet customers believe they can do it againt this week against Port Adelaide. A Bet of $10000 @ $2.75 to win the match was followed by $11000 and $5000 @ $1.90 as well as $5000 @ $1.82 all at the +15.5 point line.

Friday night's blockbuster between Hawthorn and Geelong is the biggest holding match so far without any huge bets. The Cats are $1.40 into $1.33 with only $10000 @ $1.33 and $7000 @ $1.38 registering as larger than normal investments.

TAB Sportsbet reports it will bet LIVE on Friday's match with bets to be placed by phoning 133390 or placing bets in a TAB Agency, Pub TAB, Club TAB or venue throughout Auistralia.

MASTERS SERIES TENNIS

Who said our customers were not smart. In Thursday's round of matches in the Masters Series in Toronto World no's 1 & 2 Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal were $1.03 and $1.02 respectively to win. TAB Sportsbet had over $180,000 for Rafael Nadal in his match against Jessie Levine. Down 1-4 in the 1st set Nadal rattled off 5 straight games to take the set and eventually the match.

Federer had just $2500 invested on him against Gilles Simon. He lost in 3 sets. How do they know.

GAMES

Swimming events dominate the early Games markets with a total of 15 events now available. Australians are favourite in 5 of these with Grant Hackett $2.85 for the 400m and $1.55 for the 1500m. Eamon Sullivan is at $1.95 for the 50m Free while Lisbeth Trickett heads the 100m Free and Fly markets at $1.33 and $1.22

USA are popular to snare the most medals for the upcoming Games. One bet of $8000 @ $2.15 was placed on them this week.

In the Australia Total Medals market a bet of $5000 @ $3 today on the 41-50 Medals option as well as $5000 on the 31-40 Total Medals option.

BRITISH OPEN GOLF

We were probably looked upon as being un-Australian but we were not cheering for Greg Norman in last week's Open Championship.

Norman was $501 before the start of the tournament, $51 after Round 1, $13 after round 2 and $3.25 fav after round 3. He was $51 to be leading Aussie prior to tournament, $13 after round 1 and $1.05 going into last day. The Great White Shark was backed to win more than $1m by TAB Sportsbet cutomers.

Bets on him of note early were $200 @ $501, $80 @ $501, $140 @ $251 along with numerous small wagers from Shark supporters.

Harrington opened $16 and had drifted to $34 before the start of the tournament. One customer had $5000 @ $12 after the 2nd round  and bets of $5200 @ $3.75 before the final round and $8000 @ $2.25 during the last round were taken for the Irishman.

18th July 2008

NRL

Last week looked on paper as a bonanza with 5 outsiders winning the 8 matches but TAB Sportsbet can report that round 18 will go down as one of the worst, for them, in 2008.

Gold Coast and Newcastle were well supported Friday night, Souths continue to be popular with punters and Sunday proved a wipeout with both Canberra and Bulldogs by far the best backed sides in their matches.

Good to see the punters cashed up and ready to bet this week.

Interesting match tonight with punters originally supporting Parramatta at the +12.5 line but they have now shifted back to Manly. Just on $100,000 invested today in the +/- 12.5 Line market with Manly $52,000 to Parramatta $48,000.

Bets on Manly -12.5 today include $18500 and $15000 @ $2.05, $10000 @ $1.97, $5000 @ $1.90 while Parramatta +12.5 bets are $20,000 @ $1.85, $20,000 @ $1.80 after a bet of $25000 @ $1.90 yesterday.

TAB Sportsbet customers believe Canberra's upset win over St George Illawarra wasn't a fluke by making them the best backed side in round 19 this week.

Bets of $35,000 @ $1.90 at the +5.5 point line as well as $15,000 @ $2.40 on the Raiders to win the match.

North Queensland Cowboys have lost 10 matches in a row and without playmaker Johnathan Thurston for the next month punters think that stretch will continue. They are friendless against Brisbane on Friday night with bets on the Broncos of $24,000 and $15,000 @ $1.90 at the -14.5 point line. A bet of $10,000 on Brisbane to win 13+ was also placed @ $1.75

St George Illawarra Dragons are all the rage for their match on Monday night against Melbourne. Punters have backed the Dragons very well at the +14.5 point line with just on $50,000 being placed on the today including one bet of $33000 @ $1.90

The popularity of the Bunnies is evident with a bet of $3000 @ $9 on the Red and Greens to make the final 8 this season.

AFL

An extremely quiet week in the AFL got a little hotter today with some interest in matches. Port Adelaide attracted bets of $15000 @ $1.82 and $8000 @ $1.80 at the +6.5 point line in the Showdown on Sunday.

Money split in the +/-15.5 point line tonight for the Kangaroos v Collingwood and the biggest bet so far $5000 @ 41.90 on the Kangaroos.

Minimal interest so far on the big top of the table Geelong v Western Bulldogs clash tomorrow.

BRITISH OPEN GOLF

The Royal Birkdale course was the winner following round 1 overnight with only a 3 players signing for an under par round. Pre tournament leader Sergio Garcia (+2) remains equal favourite with Aussie Adam Scott (par) from Retief Goosen (+1), Graeme McDowell (-1), Robert Allenby (-1), Jim Furyk (+1) and Miguel Angel Jimenez (+2). Joint leader Rocco Mediate (-1) is next from Mike Weir (+1).

Surprise packet of the 1st round was Greg Norman sitting at even par and firmed up from $501 into $51.

Market as at 3pm Friday

  26640  GARCIA Sergio          7.00     
  26712  SCOTT Adam             7.00     
  26644  GOOSEN Retief          11.00    
  26687  McDOWELL Graeme        11.00    
  26602  ALLENBY Robert         13.00    
  26639  FURYK Jim              13.00    
  26661  JIMENEZ Miguel Angel  13.00   
  26755  MEDIATE Rocco          21.00    
  26734  WEIR Mike              26.00
  others from                   31.00

Because of Federal Government legislation betting on the winner is NOT allowed via the internet and bets can be placed by phoning 133390 or at a TAB office throughout Australia    

10th July 2008

NRL/AFL DOUBLE

A TAB Sportsbet customer has backed the Brisbane/Hawthorn NRL/AFL double to win just under $1m this afternoon. The bet was taken from a regular client and they placed $20,000 on the combination at the odds of $49.50 and will receive $990,000 if both teams are successful in their respective competitions.

Brisbane currently sit in 6th position on 21 points, 5 behind leaders Manly, Sydney Roosters and Cronulla and welcome back captain Darren Lockyer this weekend while Hawthorn are in 3rd spot on 48 points behind Geelong (52) and Western Bulldogs (50).

NRL

Frantic betting yesterday on a number of matches this weekend. Just under $200,000 was invested on the opening day of trading for Round 18 with Cronulla the best supported side in their clash with equal competition leaders Manly on Saturday night.

Biggest bet was $40,000 on the Sharks @ $1.90 with a line of +4.5 with other bets at the same line of $5850 @ $1.85, $5000 and $3200 @ $1.80

TAB Sportsbet customers believe that +16.5 is nowhere near enough for Gold Coast against Sydney Roosters on Friday night. Gold Coast as an entity has never beaten the Roosters in 9 attempts when playing at the SFS and the line was backed in from $1.90 to $1.70. Bets include $20,000 @ $1.90, $10,000 @ $1.85, $5,000 @ $1.80 and $10,000 @ $1.75.

Other bets of note in Round 18 include $15,000 @ $1.90 on Parramatta -6.5 v Souths, $15,000 @ $1.90 on Brisbane -16.5 v Bulldogs and $10,000 @ $1.90 on Melbourne -8.5 v Wests Tigers.

Multis on the well backed sides have been $5,000 @ $3.61 on Roosters -16.5/Cronulla +4.5 and $6,000 on the same combination at the reduced quote of $3.42.

AFL

Quiet trading on Round 15 of the AFL with only bets of note being $10,000 @ $1.10 on Western Bulldogs v Melbourne and $5,600 @ $1.83 on St Kilda v Carlton in Friday Night Football.

Betting has flipped on the West Coast v Richmond match following the withdrawl of Matthew Richardson. Richmond were favs at $1.83 and West Coast $1.90 but they are reversed with the Eagles now favourites.

BRITISH OPEN GOLF

Sergio Garcia ($11) heads the betting for a Tiger-less 137th Open Championship from Royal Berkdale in Lancashire next week. Best placed of the Aussies is Geoff Ogilvy and Adam Scott, who looks like taking an injury into the tournament, both are at $23. The newly married Great White Shark Greg Norman is at $501.

THE GAMES

No great change to Australia's Gold Medal tally market following the injury to 400m Hurdle runner Jana Rawlinson yesterday. The band of 15-17 Gold Medals is still favourite at $3.25 from 12-14 Golds at $3.75 and 9-11 Golds at $5.

STATE OF ORIGIN

Game 1 last night held a record $3.99m which was a 20% increase on Game 1 of 2007.

NSW Sales up 16.8% on Game 1 last year
Vic Sales up 26.6% on Game 1 last year
Interstate Sales (ex NSW and Vic) up 25.1% on Game 1 last year

AFL FAVOURITES

AFL punters have certainly had a winning start to the 2008 Season at TABSportsbet with over 80% of favourites getting the points in the first 8 rounds of football.

Rounds 6 and 8 produced eight winning favourites whilst rounds 2 and 5 provided favourite punters with seven winners.

The longest priced winner for the season is Richmond, who were $5.75 when they trounced Fremantle at Subiaco in round 5 with $3.80 being the next best for the season. Shortest priced favourite is Geelong when they opened at $1.02 in their game against Melbourne at Skilled Stadium in round 3.

With many punters linking up a number of favourites in Multi bets, TABSportsbet has had plenty of significant payouts in the first eight rounds so at this stage of the season the punters lead easily.

ROUND NUMBER    WINNING FAVOURITES      LONGEST PRICE WINNER   
1       5       $2.15  
2       7       $1.95  
3       6       $2.90  
4       5       $5.75  
5       7       $2.30  
6       8       All favourites 
7       6       $3.60  
8       8       All favourites 

4th October 2007

Tennis Australia and Tabcorp respond to media coverage of Australian Open

Tennis Australia and Tabcorp Holdings Limited today corrected some media reports concerning betting at next year’s Australian Open.

Some local and international media reports inappropriately created the impression that Tabcorp’s betting on tennis may be compromised by having a TAB outlet at the Australian Open event.

Tennis Australia Chief Executive Officer Steve Wood clarified that the measures taken at the Australian Open were in no way related to the operations of TAB betting on the tournament.

“Tennis Australia has no concerns around the operations and the integrity of the TAB.

“There are no issues concerning Tabcorp and its betting activities. The international allegations that have been reported in the media have nothing to do with Tabcorp.

“Our measures for the Australian Open are designed to ensure that players and officials are aware of their obligations in maintaining the highest standards of integrity and player behaviour. We have a zero tolerance towards players and officials betting on matches,” Mr Wood said.

Tabcorp Chief Executive Officer Elmer Funke Kupper said he shares the objective of Tennis Australia to protect the integrity of betting on sports. “The issues that have led to Tennis Australia’s decision are not related to the TAB.  Tabcorp, as the leading wagering operator in Australia, is committed to maintaining the highest levels of integrity around betting on sport. 

“Tabcorp has a strong track record in this regard and works closely with sporting administrators and regulators to ensure the highest standards are maintained.  We respect the request of Tennis Australia that no TAB outlet will be on site at the tournament and we will continue to offer betting through our normal retail, phone and internet channels.”