Six of seven favourites win as punters enjoy dream day at Glorious Goodwood

The headline act was unbeaten star Bow Echo, who overcame traffic problems to land the Visit Qatar Sussex Stakes and extend his flawless record, sparking huge celebrations among racegoers and capping a remarkable sequence of winning market leaders.

Earlier in the afternoon, favourites Infraad (2-1), Wild Blossom (5-4), Flora Of Bermuda (5-2) and Pershaada (11-4) had all delivered, piling the pressure on layers before the feature race. The Arabian contest also went the way of the favourite, while the card concluded with 11-2 joint-favourite Crimson Spirit scoring in the finale.

French Affair, sent off at 14-1, was the only winner across the card not to start at or near the head of the betting.

One betmaker admitted it had been one of the toughest days they could remember, with Bow Echo proving the most expensive result after attracting sustained support throughout the day.

“It’s been a graveyard for bookmakers.

“It’s been tough, with all of the favourites well-backed. The most support was for Bow Echo and if bookmakers had not been 4-0 down, he probably wouldn’t have started as big as he was.

“We were all trying to get him beaten, so we pushed him out to 5-4. We thought we’d done it with about a furlong to go but it wasn’t to be. He’s a public horse now and it was a painful result.”

Rumours circulated around the course of a £40,000 wager on Bow Echo, although bookmakers suggested the majority of bets were considerably smaller.

The same betmaker added: “It’s different to Royal Ascot and definitely different to the Cheltenham Festival.

“We took a couple of £1,000 bets on Bow Echo, and one £2,000 at 5-4, but Goodwood is generally not about big bets. It’s a different vibe. It’s not heavy punting but there are enough bets to cause damage when the favourites win. Who’d be a bookie?”

While the results made for a difficult afternoon, another bookmaker suggested lower-than-usual turnover prevented losses from becoming even more severe.

“Business was dire again. On a day like today, with the results we’ve had, we’d normally be holding between £3,000 and £8,000 a race.

“However, some races we’ve only been holding £2,500. We’ve had one good punter bet with us all day at £2,000 a race and if we took him out of it, our business would be similar to a Plumpton Monday. It’s the worst I’ve seen at this meeting in 42 years.”

They revealed Flora Of Bermuda had been their firm’s biggest loser, creating a £6,000 liability before Bow Echo’s victory added further pain.