Star Sports punter wins £83,000 from £230k bet as Constitution Hill bolts up

A punter celebrated winning more than £83,000 after placing a £230,000 bet with bookmaker Star Sports on Constitution Hill to win the Champion Hurdle.

The Michael Buckley-owned six-year-old took his unbeaten record under rules to six after cruising to a nine-length victory over his nearest rival State Man.

The bet was laid at 4-11 by the Brighton-based bookmaker and returned a profit of £83,636. Dave Jolly, head of trading with the firm, admitted it was a tough result.

He said: “At the moment we’re feeling a little bit sorry for ourselves. It wasn’t too bad going into that race.

“It’s been a tough day but we’ve been incredibly busy. From a racing point of view, Constitution Hill was fantastic and it was good for the sport. Compared to last year it’s like night and day as we’re so far ahead of last year’s run rate [turnover].”

After his stunning success, winning jockey Nico de Boinville jokingly apologised about Constitution Hill winning only by nine lengths.

Some firms had offered odds of the unbeaten superstar winning by at least ten lengths, but Jolly said the margin of victory did not change much for them.

He added: “There was minimal interest in the bet and although we took some money from it, there was nothing of any major significance really.”

Despite being hit by a few short-priced winners on the opening day of the festival, which also included 11-10 favourite El Fabiolo in the Arkle, Jolly is confident fortunes will turn.

He said: “It’s early days and we’re sore at the moment, but hopefully we can make a comeback across the rest of the week.

“When the favourite hasn’t won it’s gone to the other fancied horse, so nothing has gone our way yet, but it’s early days and we’re still hopeful.”

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