The Syndicate from Betting Rant Review
Let me start this The Syndicate from Betting Rant review by saying I thought this closed down for new members back in 2015. … and you could be forgiven for thinking the same.
Even if you went to the Betting Rant site, found their own review and clicked the link to buy … you get a message to say that the offer is closed. Since Betting Rant and Agora, the folks behind The Syndicate are the same company … this left me confused.
Especially when I was forwarded an email the other day by one of the sites many readers. This was offering membership of The Syndicate from Betting Rant to 50 people. Provided they were lucky enough to get in before the doors closed, of course.
They were asking what it was all about, so I took a look. I will admit to being more than a little surprised by what I found out. Not least the changes that seem to have occurred in the last two years.
Contents
How long does The Syndicate take to set up?
How long does it take to use The Syndicate?
How much can you make with The Syndicate?
How much does The Syndicate cost?
The Syndicate from Betting Rant Advantages
The Syndicate from Betting Rant Disadvantages
The Syndicate from Betting Rant Conclusion and Overall Rating
What is The Syndicate?
In a nutshell, The Syndicate from Betting Rant is a tipping service. Horse racing betting tips are given via daily email Monday to Friday and can be accessed in the online member’s area. But, to take the same tone as those M&S adverts from a few years ago, this is not just any tipping service…
It all looks very polished, the pedigree of the contributors seems sound. There is plenty to fill you full of confidence. But then you come across something that doesn’t sit right and makes you think twice.
The first place this happens is with the contributors. They seem to have experienced a line-up change since I first read about the Syndicate back in 2015…
How does The Syndicate Work?
The tips used to come from three sources, which has now been reduced to two (I’ll come to why that’s a problem in a moment). Each of these sources were fields of expertise of the original three authors. Matt Houghton, Miles Tredwell and Karl Zanft.
The services they provided were National Hunt Syndicate (Matt Houghton). Tredwell’s Summer Selections (from, as you’ve guessed, Miles Tredwell). Finally, Place Master Syndicate from Karl Zanft.
This has now changed to National Hunt Syndicate and Tredwell’s Summer Selections. Karl and everything he contributed seems to have disappeared. It’s like they are trying to pretend his involvement never actually happened.
I have no idea what Karl Zanft is no longer part of the set-up. But, the way he seems to have been ‘erased’ hints that it might not have been entirely amicable. There might have been something unsavory involved.
How long does The Syndicate take to set up?
As this is a tipping service, once you’ve paid, you’re in. It should go without saying that you will need to open bookmakers accounts if you don’t have them already. You could of course, just use one account. Yet, it is normal for you to have a couple to look for ‘value’
How long does it take to use The Syndicate?
This depends on how many tips there are, the time of year and how many you want to take. We all know putting a bet on can take less than a minute, so it’s not going to take a large lump out of your day.
The only slight issue here is with the emails themselves. These are excellent emails, which not only give you the tip but the reasoning behind it in some depth. It’s not quite the same depth as, say, Mathematician Betting, but it can be a bit of a read.
So, whilst all of the detail does give you the feeling you are getting that bit more for your money, it can take a bit longer than you’d like.
How much can you make with The Syndicate?
First, we need to apply a little perspective. It is quite a sobering thought that some tipsters can get by with a mere 21% success rate. All without getting lynched by their followers, so the bar is already set pretty low.
Against this rather dour backdrop it must be pointed out that The Syndicate seems to perform a lot better than this. , if you are getting involved in any tipping service, you need to be aware that even the best tipsters get it wrong at least half of the time.
How much does The Syndicate cost?
The Syndicate costs £27 per month by standing order or £37 per month by credit card. No explanation is given to why this is the case. However, if you had a suspicious mind and knew it was easier to get your money back if you paid by credit card … you might assume this was ploy to get you to pay by standing order.
Given this and Agora’s less than stellar reputation for giving refunds, you might see this as a negative. Another negative is the lack of any free trial. I know free trails weren’t standard when this was first launched, but this is the re-release. These days, anything without a free trial these days does look a bit odd.
UPDATE 2019: This is now £50 monthly regardless of payment method
Is The Syndicate easy to use?
Well, let’s look at what you get…
Let’s take Matt Houghton’s National Hunt Syndicate first of all. This service is pretty straightforward. But, like everything else you’ll find with the Syndicate , it is better suited to someone with experience of horse racing betting. If you do have this experience, however, you should find it easy to follow.
That said, beginners might find the supporting glossary useful as a tool for getting to grips with this (and all betting generally). As it explains all of the bet types.
This is essential as Matt’s service utilises single, multiple and each-way bets. As well as taking advantage of staking predominately with Best Odds Guaranteed. Other systems have come in for unfair criticism for making a lot of Best Odds Guaranteed (or BOG for short). But it is a factor in all systems these days so making much of it should not be seen as a negative.
Matt will also throw in something of a ‘wild card’ tip, something that is a bit more of a long shot than his usual tips. As a result, recommends a lower stake than normal. This is quite sensible, as the lower stakes do mean the frequent losses of the wild cards do not leave a massive hole in your trading bank. But, the odds are spectacular enough that the occasional winner does live long in the memory.
Next, we have the contribution from Miles Treadwell, ‘Treadwell’s Summer Selections’.
The first and most obvious thing about this is that you don’t just receive tips in the summer. This, of course, is a good thing but it has to be said that you throw more weight behind what he has to say in the summer months. More specifically, from the middle of May through until a couple of weeks before the clocks change again in October.
There are, of course, graveyard months for tipsters. These are usually at the beginning and the end of the season. At the start of the season, you’re never quite know how a horse will run after a long layoff. Or, there’s a very good chance they might be flagging at the end of the season.
Both these factors can throw the form book out of the window. There are other factors like variations of surface created by the British weather. Of course, this is common knowledge so there are often fewer bets outside the summer months.
The tips are given daily by email or accessed in the member’s area of the website. These come with the reasoning behind them. This insight into the thought processes is quite fascinating and contributes to the more premium feel of this service.
To the beginner, this may read like the little note inside of a fortune cookie or the musings of Mystic Meg. But, as you get to grips with the whole tipping world, they will make more sense.
The Syndicate from Betting Rant Advantages
You’ll agree, it does seem positive so far. The tips provided by the Syndicate from betting rant are at least as good, and probably better than you are likely to get from other tipsters. The cost is very reasonable, even if you are paying by credit card.
You can see the reasoning behind each tip. This gives you confidence in the tipsters and keep you going for a bit longer than you would with some others. As these tipsters actually do seem to win overall, this is a good thing.
The Syndicate from Betting Rant Disadvantages
You could easily be forgiven for wanting to give it a try. Then, as I mentioned earlier, just when you’re mostly convinced that this is for you … you come across something that takes the shine off of it all. And when you go to order The Syndicate there are two
First of all, there is the price issue I mentioned above. There is the disappearance of one third of the syndicate. The fact that one of the tipsters has been ‘erased’ does not look good. While there is a lot of distance between looking dodgy and being dodgy, this will make a lot of people think twice.
The Syndicate from Betting Rant Conclusion and Overall Rating
The Syndicate from betting rant is a premium tipping service with a good pedigree. The information is from contributors that know their stuff. However, the lack of taster or trial period and the rather curious choice of payment options, you put you off right at the start.
Therefore I would suggest that the Syndicate is for seasoned punters only. Those that have not dipped their toe into the world of tipping before should look elsewhere. Look for a system that offers some ‘free’ tips before joining. Better still, a free period to try out the whole thing before you parting with any cash.
It’s back? It never went away! Get your facts right ‘guru’.
How does Agora produce so many systems?
Hi Dave, Agora is a huge company with a LOT of staff. It’s not just Matt Houghton and a laptop!