Nap of the Day
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Online bookmakers offer odds on up to 50 sports. UK-facing operators cover horse racing and greyhounds, and most newspapers or sports sites who cover racing and greyhounds publish a nap of the day. There are many online and offline sources of tips for these two sports. Subscribers are happy to pay for a proven tipping service which often features the nap of the day. For example, you can find free tipping video’s from Timeform’s handicappers on our YouTube channel or in our News section, before most free-to-air broadcast (currently ITV) race days, which usually feature a nap of the day.
Services usually feature a staking plan. This can be based on level stakes (set unit of value, e.g. £50) or compounding stakes (set percentage of kitty, e.g. 1%). The recommendation is win or each way at the best odds available. The profitability of the nap of the day is increased by taking advantage of Best Odds Guaranteed (BOG).
What is the Nap Of The Day?
The nap of the day is a tipster’s selection that they believe has the best chance of winning. However, in some cases, the horse or dog may instead offer outstanding value. On form and ratings the selection may not stand out but the value in the odds means it is put forward as the nap of the day. This selection is often not running in the main race of the day, as the odds on offer are more important than the class of the race. More often than not, the nap of the day will be available at a short price to its obvious chance in winning. But in some cases, the nap of the day can be a big-priced outsider – it just depends on the confidence of the tipster regarding their selection. The horse or greyhound could be running on the Flat, over the jumps or at an All-weather meeting or in Graded or open races. The nap of the day is the headline tip from a tipster.
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Next-Best Tip
Having identified the nap of the day, a tipster may sometimes add a second-best selection. The factors are identical to the nap of the day process, except that the horse or dog is second in the hierarchy of tips. Next-best selections can be backed in win and each-way bets. This selection is less likely to be the favourite for a race than the nap of the day; as the confidence level is lower it usually means the odds are reflective of that. Tipsters identify two or more winning prospects and then decide which is the nap of the day and which is the second best. Some publications and tipping services feature the third best selection, and sometimes a ‘long-shot’ at big odds. The horse or dog ticks some of the boxes, most often value, but not as many as the nap of the day and second best. Punters can combine the three tips in doubles, a treble, or a combination thereof, which is known as a ‘trixie’.
Naps Tables
Some national newspapers and the racing Press publish a naps table. This displays what selection each tipster has gone for, and sometimes how each tipster is performing. The Racing Post publishes a naps table for Flat and jumps racing. The tipsters taking part in the competition generally work as pundits and tipsters for mainstream media publications. Other tables that record the nap of the day appear in specialist newspapers, such as the Racing Post, Weekender and Racing And Football Outlook.
A naps table displays the strike-rate and profitability for each pundit putting forward a nap of the day. The most profitable tipster for a level stake usually appears at the top of the table. The pundit at the bottom of the table has produced the least profit or biggest loss from the nap of the day. The following information is commonly displayed in a nap of the day table:
• Today’s nap
• Course and race
• Tipster
• Wins
• Losses
• Best winning run
• Worst losing run
• Current run
• Monthly profit/loss for £1 level stake
• Overall profit/loss for £1 level stake
The naps competitions run from specific dates, usually season to season, and there is often a cash prize for the winning tipster who has delivered the most profitable nap tips during the dates.
Festivals And Races
The nap of the day is part of tipping in horse racing and greyhounds. However, it is more prevalent in racing and here are the main racing occasions that feature a nap of the day:
Cheltenham Festival
The Cheltenham Festival is the biggest betting meeting of the year, either on the Flat or over jumps. The festival takes place over four days in March and there are 28 races in total. Tipsters provide a nap of the day on each day over the course of the meeting. The nap of the day is not necessarily running in the main race and will not always be the favourite. There are some big-priced winners at the Cheltenham Festival and one winning nap of the day at a big price can move a tipster to the top of the table.
Grand National
The Grand National is the biggest single race for betting in the UK and Ireland. It takes place at Aintree at the start of April. Pundits are asked to put forward a nap of the race. There are usually 40 runners in the field so newspapers publish the nap and next-best for the National, including horses who are fancied to be placed. Most bookmakers offer pay-outs for horses finishing in the top six or even eight places (rather than the usual four places for a race of this type, a handicap of 16+ runners). Multiple winners have had an SP of 100/1 – even longer on the Betfair Exchange – so a tipster who identifies the winner as their nap of the day can move up many places in the naps table.
Royal Ascot
Royal Ascot is the equivalent of the Cheltenham Festival on the Flat. It takes place over five days in the middle of June and there are 30 races in total. There is a nap of the day on each day of the meeting. Fewer outsiders win at Royal Ascot and as a rule, Flat form is more reliable than jumps form, and the going less at risk of rainfall. However, any tipster that produces a winning nap of the day for each fixture will make progress in the right direction on the nap’s table.
The Derby
The Derby is the most important Flat race in the world and the biggest for betting in the UK. The race takes place at Epsom on the first Saturday in June. All the leading tipsters will put forward a nap of the day for the Derby. Favourites have a good record in the race and outsiders rarely win.