Early shopping – Bookie fills pre-raceday void

Betr has moved to fill the gap in the market left by Tabcorp’s decision to step away from offering pre-raceday markets on non-metropolitan meetings.

Tabcorp decided last month that it was in its interests to no longer guarantee it would have fixed odds up on Australian racing on the day prior to a meeting taking place.

The decision caused a stir among punters, as Tabcorp, along with bet365, had traditionally been the first to post a market, with most of the other corporate bookmakers then following suit.

It has meant that for a majority of weekday meetings, fixed odds haven’t been available until 9am, which in the case of winter can be barely more than two hours before the first race.

Betr, the ambitious operator which is currently in the mix to acquire PointsBet which would increase its market share to over 10 per cent, has moved to fill the void, looking to go up on the day prior to meetings in Victoria and Queensland.

It went up on Wednesday afternoon for Thursday’s meeting at Mackay and then again by 5pm Thursday for Friday’s Ipswich card.

Betr acquired TopSport in February this year and says its increased trading capability under former TopSport CEO and now betr Chief Trading Officer, Tristan Merlehan, has allowed it to lead the market.

“We’re serious about giving punters the best possible experience and that means doing our best to get markets up when punters want to bet,” Merlehan said

“If nobody goes up on Victorian and Queensland thoroughbred meetings the day before they’re held, we will step in and aim to have a market up by 5pm to make sure punters can get on.”

During his time with TopSport, Merlehan was regarded as willing to take on punters, providing a more competitive landscape. He pivoted from this model in the final two years before selling to betr, as it was more commercially sustainable to align with how other bookies operated.    

Merlehan revealed betr had been in discussions with racing bodies about meeting the market demand for earlier odds, which also facilitates greater engagement across media and the broader racing industry.

“This follows productive discussions we’ve had with Racing Victoria and Racing Queensland and shows we can improve outcomes for punters if we’re all pulling in the same direction,” he said

”We will look to work with further racing bodies and expand our early markets coverage for the benefit of our shared customers.”

There is no doubt a marketing angle to betr’s decision. The Straight reported last month that bookmaker Star Sports was also looking at filling the gap left by Tabcorp.

Bookmakers at odds over early betting changes

The early betting landscape of Australian racing changed significantly when Tabcorp altered its approach to publishing odds for certain meetings. One rival bookmaker believes the move lifts the lid on a bigger industry issue.

The StraightTim Rowe

For its part, Tabcorp said after its decision to delay posting some markets, that it was still determined to be a market leader when it comes to racing.

“We’re first to market for the majority of thoroughbred domestic races and that will continue,” a spokesman said in a statement at the time.

“Moving forward we have refined our approach to some non-metropolitan meetings whereby markets will be posted the morning of the race.”

Going up first did create greater exposure for Tabcorp, as sharp punters picked off prices, well before rivals had posted their markets.

It left it holding the liability, while many others followed when the market had been “knocked into shape”.

“We’re serious about giving punters the best possible experience and that means doing our best to get markets up when punters want to bet” – betr’s Tristan Merlehan

Bookmakers have to comply with minimum bet limits in each state.

In Victoria and Queensland, they apply from when betting markets are posted.