HE is rarely seen in public and is known as 'The Joker' in racing circles – meet the world's biggest punter.
Zeljko Ranogajec, 61 is not your average bettor.
OFFERS OF THE DAY
Bet UK: Bet £20 and get £60 in free bets – CLAIM HERE
Sky Bet: 40/1 Constitution Hill to win the Champion Hurdle –CLAIM HERE
Tote: Bet £10 get £40 – CLAIM HERE
William Hill: 60/1 Facile Vega to win the Supreme Novices Hurdle – CLAIM HERE
Betfair: Bet £10 Get £30 – CLAIM HERE
Paddy Power: Bet £20 and get it back as Cash if it Loses – CLAIM HERE
Coral: Bet £5 Get £20 – CLAIM HERE
Bet UK: New customers opt in and stake £20+ on any sporting event at odds of 1.8 or greater before 17:30 17/03/23. Free bets non-withdrawable and 7 day expiry. Qualifying bet restrictions, exclusions and full T&Cs apply. 18+ begambleaware.org.
Sky Bet: New customers only. First single & e/w bet only. £10 minimum stake. Odds of 1/1 or greater. 4 x £10 horse racing bet token. Free bet stakes not included in returns. Free bets for horse racing only. Free bets are non withdrawable. No free bet expiry. Eligibility restrictions and further t&cs apply. 18+. Begambleaware.Org. 18+ begambleaware.Org
Tote: New customers, online only. Place your first bet on racing pools, minimum £/€10, to receive £/€40 Tote Credit. £/€20 redeemable against win/place racing bets only and £/€20 redeemable against exotics bets only. Tote Credit cannot be withdrawn, exchanged, or substituted and expires after 7 days. Qualifying bet is the first racing pool bet added to the bet slip. Full T&Cs and exclusions apply. 18+. BeGambleaware.org.
William Hill: 18+. Play Safe. When you sign-up via Mobile using promo code P40 and place a bet of £10/€10 or more we will give you 4x £10/€10 free bets credited after settlement of first qualifying bet, free bets will expire 30 days after the qualifying bet is placed, payment method/player/country restrictions apply. Virtual markets excluded. #ad begambleaware.org
Betfair – Place a min £10 bet on the Sportsbook on odds of min 1/2 (1.5), get £30 in Free Bets. Rewards valid for 30 days. SMS verification required. Only deposits via cards will qualify. T&Cs apply. Please Gamble Responsibly 18+ begambleaware.org
Paddy Power: New customers only. Place your FIRST bet on any market at odds of min 2.0 (EVS) and if it loses we will refund your stake in CASH. Max refund for this offer is £20. Only deposits made using cards will qualify for this promotion. T&Cs apply. 18+ Begambleaware.org
Coral: Eligible UK+IRE players. Paypal & some deposit & bet types excl. Min first £5 bet within 14 days of account reg at min odds 1/2 = 4x £5 free bets. Free bets valid for 7 days, stake not returned. No cash-out, restrictions & T&Cs apply. 18+ T&Cs Apply. Begambleaware.org
For starters, he's won his bet before the horses even leave the stalls thanks to a unique 'rebate' system he uses.
The secretive Australian – also nicknamed the 'Loch Ness Monster' because he is so rarely seen – has used the scheme so well he is now worth a reported £333million.
Not afraid to bet big and spend big, Ranogajec is said to have bought a flat in the world's most expensive apartment block.
He drives a Lamborghini Aventador with a starting price of £270,000 and has a multi-million-pound property empire.
READ MORE IN RACING
Nicholls admits concern as jockey daughter Olive makes Cheltenham debut
Latest Cheltenham Festival build-up with Templegate’s tips and betting offers
Basically, don't expect to see him down your local bookies during Cheltenham Festival.
Thanks to his genius success on the horses, Ranogajec has been able to live a life of incredible luxury.
That was clear in 2014 when he reportedly forked out mega cash – thought to be in the tens of millions – for a property at the ultra-exclusive One Hyde Park in Knightsbridge, London.
Guarded 24/7 by SAS-trained security, the £160m sale of a penthouse flat there in 2018 was a world record.
Most read in Horse Racing
I won £250,000 from a fiver -Cheltenham bookies are terrified of me again
Cheltenham punters can wear what they want after dress code ditched
Cheltenham Festival free bets and sign up deals: Best new customer offers
Cheltenham Festival punters can enjoy alcohol-free Guinness for first time
HOW TO GET FREE BETS ON THE CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL
The incredible property as a whole, launched by renowned real estate tycoons Christian and Nick Candy in 2011, is regarded as the world's most expensive.
That's the sort of wealth we're talking about here.
But Ranogajec and his family remain incredibly secretive.
The only real clue we have about their vast fortune comes from court documents and when their social media accounts were briefly open.
The Daily Mail reported in 2018 how they would have dinner with TV star chef Heston Blumenthal.
They were said to be 'on the move every few weeks', travelling from London to Milan, Melbourne to Paris and LA to Singapore.
And they enjoyed courtside seats at Wimbledon and days out at Royal Ascot.
It is an amazing lifestyle, funded by his estimated £1.6billion staked every year as part of his huge gambling operation.
But Ranogajec – who also goes by 'John Wilson' – did not start out at the track.
After studying commerce and law at the University of Tasmania in the 1980s, he used his maths skills to good effect by winning big at blackjack and poker.
The house won eventually when they kicked him out of their casinos for being too good.
That's when he moved on to horses with betting partner David Walsh, an eccentric Australian who opened a gallery of 'sex and death' labelled the 'adult Disneyland'.
Ranogajec's rapid success meant he was soon able to employ a small army of workers – much like billionaire punter Bill Benter.
By this stage, he was betting massive sums – and benefiting from a 'rebate' initiative in betting pools.
It basically meant that he could make money whatever he bet, win or lose.
Some rebates – a form of cashback on what he staked – were as big as 20 per cent.
Ranogajec explained it best in Australian court documents in 2008. He said: "It's very simple. You bet to lose so that you actually turn over more money and the win comes from rebates.
"If you bet $100 and lost $5, but you get a ten per cent rebate, you still make five per cent. You always win.
"We're called Bankroll Punters Club, that's what we call ourselves.
"Customers that bet on our level number in the handful in the world."
The same could be said for the select few who know the world's biggest and most elusive punter.
FREE BETS GET OVER £2,000 IN SIGN UP OFFERS HERE
Commercial content notice: Taking one of the bookmaker offers featured in this article may result in a payment to The Sun. 18+. T&Cs apply. Begambleaware.org
Remember to gamble responsibly
A responsible gambler is someone who:
- Establishes time and monetary limits before playing
- Only gambles with money they can afford to lose
- Never chases their losses
- Doesn’t gamble if they’re upset, angry or depressed
- Gamcare – www.gamcare.org.uk
- Gamble Aware – www.begambleaware.org
Commercial content notice: Taking one of the bookmaker offers featured in this article may result in a payment to The Sun. 18+. T&Cs apply. Begambleaware.org
Read More on The Sun
I did weekly shop at M&S and found 14 items cheaper or same price as Aldi & Lidl
I transformed my council house kitchen with cheap buys from Wilko & B&M…it’s so posh
Remember to gamble responsibly
A responsible gambler is someone who:
- Establishes time and monetary limits before playing
- Only gambles with money they can afford to lose
- Never chase their losses
- Doesn’t gamble if they’re upset, angry or depressed
- Gamcare – www.gamcare.org.uk
- Gamble Aware – www.begambleaware.org
Source: Read Full Article
