Bookmakers open with a cautious book and adjust as money comes in. The first show of prices in the morning \u2014 often called the early prices \u2014 tends to carry a wider margin than the Starting Price. On the raceday market itself, there are consistent patterns. Ante-post markets on the Cheltenham Gold Cup or Champion Hurdle typically run between 140 and 160 per cent, which is lower than the National but still significantly wider than raceday.<\/p>\n
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Around major meetings \u2014 Cheltenham, the Grand National, Royal Ascot \u2014 bookmakers offer boosted prices on selected runners. If the exchange offers 6.0 and the bookmaker offers 5\/1, the bookmaker is competitive after commission. Instead of setting odds and accepting bets against them, the exchange matches punters on opposite sides of a bet. At the upper end, you find big-field handicaps with 20 or more runners, where each horse price can be inflated by a few ticks without any individual punter noticing the difference.<\/p>\n