This is an old piece and though the content is largely obvious, we thought it worth another airing. It delves briefly into 5 topics such as Mindset, Emotional Resilience, Bankroll, Record Keeping & Staking Plans.

Mindset

Finding a way to profit from sports betting demands a certain mindset, one that eludes and beyond the reach of the vast majority of bettors. Even then, in a discipline which is highly subjective, once you think you have the game beat, you get a kicking in the proverbial. So what have we learnt in 57 years of betting? Quite a bit actually...

Emotional Resilience

Undoubtedly, the most challenging prerequisite is achieving a high degree of emotional resilience. Individuals adept in emotional resilience recognise human vulnerabilities and the patterns leading to emotional turmoil, thus enabling them to concentrate and perceive the broader perspective or the long-term strategy. Carl Jung observed, "Emotion is not an activity of the individual but something that happens to him." The most proficient sports bettors manage to detach their emotions from their betting choices. To succeed, you must learn to do likewise or adopt a comparable approach.

On a personal note, we have never truly conquered the emotional aspect of betting. By understanding its form and nature we have managed to shackle it, but admit there remain times when a losing bet hurts more than it should, given our self-proclaimed professional status. The word shackle is used because the negative emotional responses never fully disappears, it is always there, lurking.

Dedicated Bankroll

Individuals serious about betting should have a dedicated bankroll and a staking plan tailored to their personality. No two bettors on planet earth are alike in their approach, or risk versus reward mentality. Every successful bettor maintains a dedicated bankroll, that is not scared money, and prioritises its preservation. In the event of losses, they are prepared to lose this bankroll without it adversely affecting their life beyond sports betting.

This investment bank will precisely gauge the success or failure and minimise emotional influence on your betting decisions. Regrettably, many place random bets using funds from their overall finances, which introduces significant risk factors, preventing them from accurately assessing the effectiveness of their betting strategy.

Record Keeping

Every bettor has a unique mental approach to gambling, yet maintaining records is an essential practice for those committed to profiting from betting. Record-keeping aids the betting process by providing clear indicators of where the profits and losses reside, and serves as an historical account detailing one's journey. Without record-keeping, bettors are certain to fail and cannot be deemed professional.

Staking Plan

A staking plan outlines the strategy for determining the portion of your bankroll to invest in a specific bet. Securing an edge or value in any bet is crucial, so the method and timing of your stake are vital. Most professionals adjust their stake size depending on their confidence in their choice, or the degree of discrepancy in the odds. The larger the gap between the secured price and that offered by the bookmaker, the greater the edge. Conversely, erratic and random staking without an edge is arguably the fastest route to losing the set aside bank.

A staking plan involves calculating your stake with the goal of either maximising profit or minimising risk, but not both simultaneously. For instance, a plan focused on maximising profits inherently carries a higher risk of greater financial loss, and vice versa. A widespread fallacy is that certain staking strategies, especially progressive ones, can transform a losing operation into a profitable one. This indicates a misinterpretation of the mathematical concepts inherent in these strategies.

Typically, percentage staking does not consider the bettor's confidence level in the wager; therefore, ideally, an adjustment to reflect the confidence level could or should be implemented. One interesting method is to implement three levels of confidence and incorporate those percentages into the bet.

Stephen P is a long-standing member of TRH and bets professionally by incorporating the Pacafi into his portfolio, favoring a tiered staking plan. Upon acknowledgement of our advice, he applies his own criteria to filter advice, ensuring only the most promising bets are included in his ledger.

TIERED STAKING PLAN

• FOUNDATIONAL Bet: 3% of the betting bank
• STANDARD Bet: 4% of the betting bank
• CROWN Bet: 5% of the betting bank

This method has proven effective for him, and something we are contemplating adopting when we return to public proofing in March. The above is not considered aggressive or progressive staking given the nomination without any filtering whatsoever consistently yield strike rates of around 55%. His records indicate that the highest strike rates correspond with his largest stakes, underscoring the importance of maintaining detailed records.

The practice of percentage of the bank staking faces criticism, yet it's important to remember that it poses no threat to the bank's security. Our guiding principle and demand is for NO RISK, which aligns with our natural inclination for safety and assurance.

Regarding our operation online, we typically recommend assigning a 1pt level stake to Pacafi selections based on perceived value nominations. Level stake betting does not inherently maximize or minimise risk. Whilst some argue that a level stake approach lacks logic, it establishes a standard for measuring profitability and assessing risk.

If a strategy consistently generates profits to level stakes within our bandwidth, then it is truly effective. Likewise, if the strategy naturally sustains an average strike rate of 55% or higher, it prevents the extended, disheartening losing streaks that can crush an individual's spirit and betting bank. Naturally, one should be wary of level staking results from a small sample size; however, our sample is substantial, covering thousands of bets. Consequently, with our method, the loss of our betting bank is not a possibility - it simply cannot happen!.

It is acknowledged that some view our betting strategy as excessively cautious and lacking in excitement, a viewpoint we understand and accept. Our preference has always been for consistent and incremental growth within a risk-free environment. As we hit certain benchmarks with our bank, we are able to increase our stakes accordingly, and we believe that betting in proportion to our capital is the most appropriate approach for us.

Our strategy and approach are perfectly aligned with our personal betting philosophy, though we acknowledge that the vast majority may not embrace it. Looking ahead, TRH is optimistic that our acclaimed Racecourse Templates will continue to offer profitable opportunities for EVERYONE!