Core Value Bets is a new to market horse racing tipster service that is operated by Andy Higgins through Best System Bets. He claims that his service offers some substantial profit potential by finding value.
Introduction to Core Value Bets
The idea of value in horse racing is an interesting thing to me. To clarify, I know for a fact that value can exist. It does exist. But over the last few years I feel like a lot of tipster services have started to use the idea of value as shorthand for something that it isn’t. You see, getting value means betting on a horse that has been miss-priced by bookies. This typically happens at longer odds (for example, backing a horse at 12/1 that should be priced at 8/1), but there are a lot of tipsters that seem just back long shots and call it value. Which is a problem.
I think it’s very important to keep this concept in mind when talking about today’s review subject, Core Value Bets. Because this is a tipster service that is supposedly based entirely around finding value. Andy Higgins explicitly talks about the fact he can find high priced winners. Does that mean value though…? Well, that is something that I feel it is a key question when you’re looking at this. Now don’t get me wrong, if this can be delivered, this is a winner. There are seemingly some massive profits on show here.
I know what you’re thinking. Tipsters making crazy claims about profit… What’s new there? Interestingly, there is a direct reference made to these same tipsters in the sales video for Core Value Bets, but I’ll come back to this a little later on. What matters is that Andy Higgins and Best System Bets display some of them profits. They claim to show that there is this substantial income potential here. The problem that I have is that I’m not entirely convinced that all is as it seems to be here. So, let’s get into it and explore why.
What Does Core Value Bets Offer?
Core Value Bets is actually a pretty interesting tipster service. Not necessarily in the ways that you might expect, but Andy Higgins clearly has an idea of what they are going for. And boy howdie does he stick to his guns. There is a lot of structure to this, but at the same time, the little evidence that Best System Bets provide suggests a strong degree of fluidness. Two ideas that are somewhat at odds.
This is peppered throughout a lot of the service, both in terms of how it is managed, what you are betting on, and how you are betting. But before I get into the bets (which are undoubtedly the meat and veg of what Andy Higgins is trying to do here), let’s talks about how Core Value Bets is actually managed.
If I’m honest, this is a pretty straight forward daily tipster service in many respects. Selections are issued via Best System Bets to Core Value Bets subscribers each morning. These contain Andy Higgins’s selections and a reasonable enough amount of information. This is all ultimately pretty standard fare though.
Now, I do think that there are some things worth discussing at this point. As is clear from the name, Core Value Bets is a “value” based service. By which of course, I mean that it involves backing horses to big odds. Andy Higgins sends out selections about 10.30am, and as you might expect, prices can be a little bit all over the place. As such, if you are able, I would recommend using an odds comparison site to make sure you’re getting the best possible prices.
This shouldn’t theoretically be too difficult. A key part of Core Value Bets is Andy Higgins saying that he provides 3 selections each day. That is seemingly pretty rigid stuff wit the whole set up of the service being based around this idea. But importantly, it shouldn’t take time to manage this kind of lower volume.
At this point I know that I’ve talked a lot about the kinds of odds you can expect to see. Typically, Core Value Bets will have bets at odds ranging from about 10/1 all the way up to 40/1. Ultimately, you might find that your milage varies depending on what time you’re looking etc. (which is why it’s worth putting the time in if you’re following this). I’ve also seen odds that are occasionally outside of this range.
As you might expect given those odds, a big part of making Core Value Bets a viable option is betting on an each way basis. This is exactly what Andy Higgins recommends that you do. Interestingly, there is also an optional each way treble that you can place. This strikes me as a bit of an odd thing. Either it is a part of the service or it isn’t. My gut feeling though is that there have been a few winners recently and Best System Bets are keen to include them because it’s extra profit.
One of the things that is good about Core Value Bets is that Andy Higgins recommends level stakes of just 1 point per bet. Given the low volume, this makes for a very manageable service. It is interesting to note however that there isn’t any advice on a betting bank. Instead, we are simply told that you can start betting with as little as 20p through certain bookies.
This staking plan doesn’t actually apply to those optional trebles though. Instead, they are advised to be backed at just a quarter point. This makes sense, but I am uncertain how it is all supposed to fit into the structure that Andy Higgins very clearly sets up for Core Value Bets.
Finally, let’s talk about the strike rate. Or rather interestingly, the lack of. Andy Higgins says that “t is unrealistic to expect to win everyday. There will be periods with lots of winners and periods with less winners”. Which is fair enough on paper. But something to keep in mind is that because this is ultimately based around each way bets, a lot of those winners won’t be full winners.
How Does Core Value Bets Work?
When you start to look at how Core Value Bets works, things become a little curious in my opinion. There is an approach of sorts that Andy Higgins takes in which the bets that he advises are grouped into certain odds brackets. These are a selection between 10/1 and 17/1, one between 18/1 and 25/1, and one between 25/1 and 40/1. Why? Well, that is something that we aren’t really told about.
You see, Andy Higgins says that these are all “strong value based selections”. He also says in the sales video that he has proven for years that he can deliver on high priced winners. He says that the strategies that are behind Core Value Bets have been “tried and tested for over 15 years”. The truth is though that far too much of this, for my liking at least, means just taking somebody’s word that their service (which you pay them for) will work.
The fact is that we aren’t actually given any real insight into the selection process. Andy Higgins doesn’t say how he identifies value. Just that his bets are value. But coming back to that point I made earlier, picking long shot horses isn’t something that inherently provides value. You have to know why there is value, and I don’t believe that this is adequately explained. There is almost nothing about how Core Value Bets actually works.
Adding to this rather problematic situation is a very distinctive lack of evidence backing… well, anything up. This is something that I have encountered with Best System Bets before now and Core Value Bets isn’t any different. There is no real proofing for the service and what little there is just amounts to a few bets. It is hardly conclusive and certainly isn’t enough to say comprehensively that there is actual value or profit involved in the long term.
What is the Initial Investment?
The lowest priced option for Core Value Bets is a quarterly subscription which is priced at just £29.95 every 3 months (again, plus VAT). This is actually a very reasonable cost for the service. Interestingly, despite being advertised as a discounted rate, it seems that future payments are also billed at this price.
If you are looking for a longer subscription than this, then Andy Higgins offers a few options for Core Value Bets on an annual subscription at a cost of £59.95 (plus VAT). Finally, there is a lifetime license which Andy Higgins offers. This allows you to sign up, for life, for a one time cost of £99 (again, plus VAT) however this is advertised as a limited time offer.
It is noteworthy that the sales video for Core Value Bets does say that there is a 60 day trial and if you aren’t impressed by the performance Andy Higgins will “hand back every penny, no questions asked”. This is at odds with Best System Bets’s standard policies however in which they say that they don’t offer refunds, but you can cancel a service when you want. Personally, I would anticipate the latter rather than the former.
What is the Rate of Return?
In terms of the income potential, things are really quite interesting. Andy Higgins claims that the average profit per month for Core Value Bets is between 20 and 40 points. We are also told that on average, the daily profit is 1.5 points. Those are all reasonably believable numbers, but you should keep in mind that there isn’t a whole lot of evidence backing that up.
Where things become more questionable however is in the sales video. Here, the claim is that Core Value Bets can make you £147.11 every single day. That in a single day there was an ROI produced of 1,823.5%, and that “small stakes” can be turned into £53,696.60 over a 12 month period. I am really quite sceptical about these claims too. They seem much more arbitrary and substantially more profitable than the limited evidence suggests is plausible.
Conclusion for Core Value Bets
It is clear, and not really surprising to me that Core Value Bets looks good. But the thing with this line of work is that I see loads of tipster services that look good. Actually delivering on that is a very different kettle of fish. Which begs the real question of whether or not Andy Higgins can deliver.
I’m a bit on the fence about this if I’m honest. I can see how the strategy works. I’ve seen plenty of tipster services that adopt similar strategies work. But again, the question here isn’t about whether or not Core Value Bets can work, but whether it will. And I’m not entirely convinced about this.
There are a few key reasons for this, but the big one is undoubtedly the incredibly obvious lack of evidence. At the end of the day, Andy Higgins doesn’t actually tell you about how he is finding selections. That is a pretty big problem with something that is supposedly value based. Without a discernible strategy for picking horses, you’re just backing longshots, and Core Value Bets likes them long.
Then there is a complete lack of proofing or evidence. Andy Higgins directly mentions that he’s been using the approach that is behind Core Value Bets for years. So why isn’t there anything backing this up? Any serious bettor worth their salt knows that you keep records. It’s how your monitor your profit and loss, see where things stop working, and a host of other insight.
Of course, you may say that we’re given some proofing. But let’s be honest for a minute. The evidence that is provided, that can in any way be substantiated (at least to a small degree) is 5 days of betting slips. Conveniently, these are all Betfair. Betfair slips appear on a large number of questionable services and as such, I don’t put much faith in them. But even if you take Andy Higgins and Best System Bets at face value, Core Value Bets has had 5 good days.
Those aren’t just small details that you can overlook. Core Value Bets flagrantly doesn’t really tell you much about what you’re getting into. And what little it does say is all so incredibly generic and lacking substance that it’s hard to put much faith behind it. None of which really bodes well.
Honestly, there are only two positives that I can see for Core Value Bets, and neither does enough to override the issues. Firstly, there is the potential of big winners and somewhat consistent profit here (through the place part of each way bets landing). Secondly, Best System Bets have priced this remarkably modestly. £10 really isn’t a lot to pay for a tipster service.
So, would I look to recommend Core Value Bets? I don’t think I would. Personally, I see a lot of flaws here that I’ve just seen too many times before now. Usually on systems that, if I’m honest, haven’t necessarily performed particularly well. For those who don’t mind taking a risk, there may be some merit in giving this a punt given the cost. But I would rather put more money into something that actually does work rather than just taking the word of people.
