Here’s a trade secret from someone who used to be on the other side of the ledger: the NAP is the shop window, but it’s rarely where the money is. The Sun’s Templegate spent Friday proving it. His most confident bet of the day beat three horses home, and he still finished the day as the only tracked tipster in profit.
| Tipster (Publication) | Bank Yesterday | Tips (1u each) | Winners | Current Bank (units) | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Templegate (The Sun) | 10.0 | 3 | 1 (33%) | 11.0 | Alive – top of the table |
| Paul Kealy (Racing Post) | 10.0 | 1 | 0 (0%) | 9.0 | Alive |
| Oddschecker (oddschecker.com) | 10.0 | 2 | 0 (0%) | 8.0 | Alive – bottom of the table |
| Andrew Asquith (Sporting Life) | – | 0 | – | 10.0 (unstarted) | No Friday tips published – starts when he does |
A reminder of the house rules for new readers: every tracked tipster starts on 10 units, one unit rides on every published tip at the quoted price (SP where none is given), and when a bank hits zero the coverage stops for good. Templegate put three bets on Friday’s public record: a NAP, a next best, and the final leg of his famous treble.
The Big Hits
The bet that paid the rent was the one under the headline. Master Vintner, Templegate’s next best at 3/1, took the 4.10 at Thirsk – a Class 3 handicap over a mile and a half – under Edward Greatrex for Ralph Beckett, while the well-backed favourite Sudu finished stone last of six. One unit staked, three units profit, and the whole day rescued at a stroke.
That single winner is why Templegate tops our day-one table at 11.0 units while Paul Kealy (9.0) and Oddschecker (8.0) – both sunk by the same fourth-placed horse in Brighton’s Bullet – start the series chasing. One winner from three headline bets, a 33% strike rate, and a profit. Tipping is a strange business.
The Eliminations & Misses
Now the shop window. Tokyo Joe was the NAP – the bet The Sun’s readers are told is the day’s banker – at 9/4 in the 8.38 at Haydock, a Class 5 handicap over seven furlongs under the lights. The public followed him in and he went off 9/4 favourite. He was never better than midfield and trailed home eighth of eleven behind 9/2 winner Montezin. Not beaten a head, not hampered, not unlucky. Eighth. As someone whose own career died by a thousand confident bankers, I felt that one in an old wound.
The treble leg completed the set. Faith In Florence, put up at 7/4 for Musselburgh’s 2.20 novice, was sent off 6/5 favourite, disputed second over a furlong out and had no more to give, third of five behind Minster Man. The famous Templegate treble – NAP, next best, treble pick rolled together – was dead two legs in.
So the scorecard reads: confidence bets 0 from 2, the supporting act 1 from 1 at the biggest price on the slip. If you backed Templegate’s card as instructed you made money; if you only ever follow the NAP – and most punters do, because that’s what the marketing is for – you lost. That gap between the headline and the bankroll is exactly what this series exists to measure.
Today’s Outlook
Templegate defends his one-unit lead on the busiest Saturday of the month: Shergar Cup day at Ascot, where his NAP faces six team races full of international jockeys on unfamiliar horses – our Ascot Shergar Cup preview has the full card, plus race-by-race previews for Haydock and Newmarket. Kealy, Oddschecker and – for the first time – Andrew Asquith are all in action too. The full table and Friday’s settling are in the day-one review. Sunday’s ledger will show whether the banker’s curse follows Tokyo Joe’s tipster to Berkshire.
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