It seems Australian Yachting wants to tell you what you can and cannot do with your hard-earned money, including betting on the Hobart Race. Apparently, every other sport is doing it wrong, and the Aussie overlords seem to think betting on yacht racing is going to ruin the sport’s “ethical and honourable nature,” whatever the fuck that means. Other sports have gone through this over the years, and the only way anyone has ever gotten in trouble for betting was from opening their mouths about a big win or being busted for ‘throwing’ one. So bet all you want, and we’ve verified that it is possible to place a bet from outside Oz, though you’ll need a VPN to place your online bets from many countries (including the USA) or just call it in.
Here’s an excerpt from the officious letter Australian Sailing wrote the CYCA, though we have no idea where they came up with their odd view of the reality of even the existing silly rules governing betting.
Australian Sailing is aware of move to engage betting agencies with a number of international events and World Championships held recently in Europe. The integrity of our sport is vital and this is an unwelcome development…”
“To be clear, there is a restriction for sailors, gamily members, and related parties on the following:
*Betting on an event
*Communicating with external people who seek advice on an event for the purposes of placing bets
*Any link or encouragement of family members or others to place a bet on your behalf.
There are some great bets on various sites, including head-to-head matchup bets and over/under race times. The latest odds from the tab.com site for the big ones are below, and it’s hard to find real good underdog picks. We’d probably go for WOXI for line honors at 4.50 to 1 and Beau Geste at 10.00.
Overall winner
Comanche: 1.70
Black Jack: 4.25
WOXI: 4.50
Infotrack: 10.00
Beau Geste: 26.00
Handicap Winner
Mascalzone Latino 32: 5.50
Ichi Ban (52): 6.50
Beau Geste: 10.00
Quest: 11.00
Wizard: 11.00
Wild Oats X (66′): 12.00
