Just reading a novel there, set in Italy in the first world war, the protaganists are having a day at the races and they see a purplish/black horse that they reckon has been dyed that colour. The race is for horses that have never won a race worth 1,000 lire or more. The dyed horse is 35 to 1 and they punt 100 lire on it to win.
It goes out of the gate and immediately builds up a 15 length lead and wins comfortably.
They are expecting to get paiiiid but because there has been a lot of betting on near the start of the race the price drops to 1.85 to 1 and so they only win 185 lire.
Obviously this goes against what I understand to be gambling. You get on at 35 to 1 then you're paid 35 to 1. The price might collapse but what you get on at is what you get paid.
My question is, has this always been the case?
Traditionally, we in the UK bet with "proper" bookmakers, where we can agree a price before the race, & "take a price" (usually Ante-Post) before a race. Or we can nominate "SP", which is the agreed starting price.
The "agreed" SP is a peculiar thing, agreed by a few nominated officials who simply average out, very crudely, the offered prices at "the off".
As an alternative, we can bet with the "nanny", aka "Nanny Goat", aka Tote, aka Totalisator. Unlike traditional bookmakers, the Tote does not form a view on the starting price - it is an EXACT mechanical calculation based on weight of money, minus a % for profit & overheads. A traditional bookie does not arrive at his prices that way at all - his is a "view" based on weight of money for each individual horse, or runner.
As Camel notes, the Tote has a (legal) monopoly in most Countries, Italy included. In France, it's the "Pari-Mutuel".
The British government owned "Tote" is, I believe, due to pass into private ownership quite soon.
Go to any dog track or racecourse, & watch the Tote boards before the race. The prices look very quirky, but eventually weight of money brings them into line & they reflect precisely the weight of money wagered.
Just to muddy the water, the Tote also takes bets at SP......
Then we come to "spreads" & "the exchanges". Don't ask about either. The first I understand intimately, & got my fingers badly burned on. I think I dropped £35k one year, sigh.
The latter I don't know how to work, though I understand the clear logic. God help me if I ever work out how to work the Exchanges, I'll have to work for the rest of my life to fund the habit. Must resist....
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