Recently we wrote about how to spot steamers and drifters on Betfair on the LetsCompareBets main site. A steamer is a horse who’s price shortens either before or during the race, and vice versa for a drifter. In the pre race market there are a number of factors that can cause the price to shorten. The skill is selecting which horse will steam or drift and then greening up.

Something we didn’t mention is the process of ‘greening up’ on Betfair. So what is greening up on Betfair? There are three steps.

First back a selection…. this is the more engaging part. In that you need a good selection system. This is a simple back the winner bet.

Second, lay the selection at lower odds to lock in a profit. The difference between the odds is the profit margin.

This bet will only lock in a profit if the selection wins. If any of the other horses win you’ve won nothing. So it’s not that great really, considering the time you have probably spent selecting the horse.

The last step is to green up. Greening up on Betfair is the process of laying all the other outcomes to guarantee a profit no matter which horse wins the race.

Various Betfair trading software will calculate this for you. It is beyond the scope of this post to review all the Betfair trading software available because there are many providers. Most will carry out the relatively simple function of ‘greening up’ on Betfair.

Greening up on Betfair is a good way to lock in a profit on your ‘bet on the winner’ selection no matter who wins the race.

Here’s a nice video showing how to calculate what stakes to lay for greening up on Betfair courtesy of our friends at Betting School.

Click here for a free copy of the Betting School insiders report

Greening up is a method that can be used with Betfair trading as well as those looking to become their own bookmaker on Betfair.