Royal Ascot punters win ‘life-changing' sum from £1 stake after run of freak results ‘not seen in years'
SEVERAL Royal Ascot punters were celebrating winning 'life-changing' sums from a £1 stake - after a run of freak results not seen in years.
Those who took on and conquered the Tote Placepot on Friday were duly rewarded with a colossal payout.
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Cercene, left, was a shock 33-1 winner of the Coronation Stakes
Credit: Shutterstock Editorial
If you managed to pick a horse to place in the first six races and stuck a quid on it, you'd have won £26,424.30.
Bookies were laughing as huge outsiders such as 33-1 Cercene won the Coronation Stakes.
While 25-1 roughie Time For Sandals nabbed the Commonwealth Cup ahead of the likes of the well-fancied Shadow Of Light, Jonquil and Babouche.
Favourite backers were licking their wounds after getting one over the layers on Thursday.
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But it was definitely 1-0 to the bookies on day four after just two favourites - Ethical Diamond and Amiloc - won.
There were just 18.15 winning units on the Placepot.
And the £26,000 dividend was one of the biggest seen in years.
However, the benchmark was set in 2022 when, on one day there, the dividend was £79,125.50 to a £1 stake.
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Kev Matthews, Head of Racing at Tote, said: "Days like this are what the Tote Placepot is all about – a small stake can lead to a life-changing return.
"Friday's dividend of over £26,000 is a perfect example.
"We saw plenty of favourites turned over and a real mix of results, which gave Placepot players a rollercoaster ride all the way through to the final leg.
"Huge congratulations to those who landed it."
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The Placepot, which requires punters to pick a placed horse in each of the first six races, remains one of the most popular bets in British racing.
With tens of thousands playing every day at Royal Ascot, today's results demonstrate the unique excitement and potential rewards of pool betting.
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