Punters pay a high price in the Festival to forget

THE ENEMY won. We lost. In the eternal battle with the bookmakers, Cheltenham 2010 will go down as the year of the abject slaughter, when the layers took the punters for tens of millions.

Just four winning favourites from 26 races over the four days meant an estimated 60 million boost to the profits of the big companies in particular, and you can bet that figure was downplayed. With as much as 600m wagered over the course of the Festival, it was a very healthy profit.

Fearless Freddie Williams will be looking down from the big rails in the sky and cursing his luck that he wasn't there, for even if his old adversary JP McManus had the winner of the Champion Hurdle with Binocular at a generous 9-1, Freddie and every other bookmaker would have more than made their money back with all the long-shot winners.

There were 33-1 and 25-1 winners and a 40-1 outsider and only ten winners finished at less than double-figure odds. But it wasn't the outsiders that made the bookies smile; no, it was "champions" Duguib, Master Minded and, above all, Kauto Star that handed them victory on a plate.

Not only that, even though the Banker went in – Big Buck's taken at evens some time ago – by Friday I had lost all confidence and even stopped the saver bet which I'd tipped up to several friends. "Bet Imperial Commander each way and you'll get a return," I assured them, and I did mention the horse as an each-way shot in last week's preview.

Did I take my own advice? Nah, the plunge was all on the Star and I knew the money was done as soon as he demolished the eighth fence. He was never moving properly after that, and it was no surprise that he fell, while Denman proved yet again that he is not the horse of two years ago, but he's still an excellent steeplechaser.

All credit to Nigel Twiston-Davies and Paddy Brennan for their treble on Friday, topped by Imperial Commander in the Gold Cup. They deserve their success, if only for the support they have given to Perth races over the years. For what it's worth, I think the Commander will improve and the Star and Denman will struggle to beat him again, except at Kempton.

Brennan was unbelievably confident about Imperial Commander and told everyone so, but the trouble with writing about horses for a Sunday newspaper is that you don't know what a jockey is going to say the day before a race. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.

A columnist should have the courage of his convictions, though. Those who were at the Hamilton preview evening will confirm I tipped Menorah and Weapon's Amnesty each-way, and made a case for Sizing Europe, but by the time I came to write my column last weekend, I had shied away from them. The trio duly won for a 1,001-1 treble.

I stuck with Menorah in the Supreme Novices, thankfully, or else the week would have been an utter disaster. But Cheltenham 2010 is already in the mental filing tray marked "forget". Bring on next year.