Racing punter turns £31 into almost £500K with incredible bet

A racing punter has landed a dream jackpot of more than £440,000 from a small stake bet - but could have won even more.

The William Hill customer pocketed the life-changing sum with an audacious five-selection bet on the opening day of the turf Flats season on Saturday.

A 50p each-way Lucky 31 was placed on Saturday morning by a male punter - who was left to celebrate his monster winnings just hours later as all his selected horses obliged.

The punter's incredible run from his £31 stake started at Kempton, where the Andrew Balding-trained Foxes Tales took victory in the 2.05 race.

But the other four bets were backed at much bigger odds, as Bear Force One came in at 20-1, also at Kempton, while 10-1 shot Valdream won the 3.00 meet at Doncaster.

The punt also included the Pertemps Lincoln winner Migration at 18-1, but the standout bet that sealed the deal was outsider Astral Beau in the final leg.  

Astral Beau was incredibly backed at odds of 40/1 and romped home in style in the Listed Doncaster Mile to leave the punter in absolute dreamland.

Remarkably, the punter in question could have been even richer, but a non-runner meant that the bookies enforced the dreaded 45p Rule 4. 

The rule on a withdrawn horse means that for every pound a punter wins in the race,  they get just 55p back so those that backed the non-runner reclaim their stake.

Not that the bettor would have been too downhearted, however, after taking home  over £440,000 in one afternoon of racing. 

William Hill spokesperson Lee Phelps said: “It’s certainly been a brilliant Saturday for one of our customers, whose 50p each-way Lucky 31 won them over £440,000.

“All five of the selections in the bet won, including Migration at 18-1 in the highlight of the day, the Lincoln at Doncaster, and after their final pick, Astral Beau, won well in the next race they were celebrating taking home £441,913.”