In a digital world where social media has become the norm and any transactions can seemingly be accomplished through mobile apps on everyone’s mobile phones, the concept of a person who physically carries an important package like cash and important documents to an office seems to be unnecessary.
While the definition of a “runner” in sports betting in general and horse racing in particular are different, let’s focus first on the person who still manually delivers bets of old-school bettors who refuse to place their bets on smartphones. This is the reason why some sportsbooks still employ these persons who remain valuable in the age of modern technology as they are still reliable if ever glitches hit the bookies’ digital platforms.
A new punter may be surprised that the value of runners remains high aside from its obvious purposes. Let’s explore the many ways why bettors need a runner, and even some groups will still look for them for many years to come.
RUNNERS RISK LIVES TO GET JOB DONE
A runner is described as a person who carries the money and betting slips from the betting parlors to its headquarters, which is called a numbers’ bank. Usually, a betting shop picks one of its employees to become a runner, who is deployed directly to the venue of a sporting event to collect and inform the institution about the change.
The bookmaker also taps the runner as its informer, who can monitor all changes that somehow can have a binding effect on upcoming sports events, before he or she passes them to a betting shop. Runners are also tasked to make corrections and refine the odds if necessary.
Runners are like messengers that they have to go out of their way to get their jobs done, like finding ways to overcome terrible weather conditions to overcome natural-related incidents like heavy traffic or even power outages to deliver the money and betting slips to the bookmaker’s headquarters.
ELDERLY STILL NEEDS RUNNERS TO PLACE BETS
Despite the growth of online transactions, mobile applications and digital technology the past few years, there are still a lot of men and women who remain to use traditional methods and have to embrace these changes.
Several groups of elderly members, believe it or not, do not want to make that transition of using their mobile phones to place their bets for some reason or another. This is where the runners come in.
While betting online ensures bettors’ identities in many ways, there are still bettors who want to place money on their favorite team and have someone else do it for them and still not trust these mobile apps. Call them “old-school” bettors but bookmakers cannot refuse them and they will still accept their bets by retaining the services of runners for such purposes.
RUNNERS ALSO PROTECT IDENTITIES OF ATHLETES, OFFICIALS
There will always be bettors who want to place their money on teams but are careful not to get identified to ensure their safety and not be embroiled in any trouble. What runners can do for them remains effective compared to placing bets online.
From bettors who place their money against their home team to those who want to bet at a casino but are on a “cold streak” to Punters who are banned from a particular sportsbook, these individuals are willing to pay extra to runners to still make bets and get the same chance as everyone to get a big payroll.
A bookmaker’s employee, professional sportsmen, athletes, coaches and officials who are not allowed to bet on the sport they are involved in can use a runner any way to still have fun and bet on any team or player.
Lastly, bettors who place a wager that exceeds the betting limit also rely on runners to get the job done. For example, if a bettor wants to place a 10,000 Euro bet and the betting limit was set at 5,000 Euros, the runner could place the other 5,000 Euro bet on their behalf.
RUNNERS CARRY RISKS THAT BETTORS SHOULD KNOW
Based on the types of individuals who still find the use of runners as useful, except the elderly, it seems — many are convinced that using runners remains illegal in sports betting circles.
These are the reasons why using runners carries big risks for bettors, who should be responsible for their choices. Punters are lucky if they find runners who they can really trust, like a distant relative or a loyal messenger or a family employee.
New bettors, however, should be informed of the presence of runners to make them aware of these kinds of individuals who they may encounter at some point in their young sports betting careers. While the common logic is still to avoid a runner’s services and place the bets yourself or go online, it is important that those who still tap runners should be ready to deal with the consequences if such transactions go awry.
