Author(s): John Adams

Horse Racing

This is a book that all Victorian race-goers and punters of all sports will find an entertaining and absorbing read. Bookmaking has always been the most colourful and vibrant part of racing in Victoria. Betting on Victorian racecourses established the unique atmosphere that existed until the advent of Sky Channel, and the more recent rapid changes in technology, that has seen racecourses stripped of the big crowds that attended meetings throughout the state. This book tells the stories of Victoria's doyen bookies as well as the eccentric bookmakers who plied their trade against many of the great characters of the tracks. There are many colourful tales of bookies and punters, particularly in the good times where big rings existed, and spirited betting occurred on Victoria's racecourses. It tells the stories of the huge betting battles that took place on greyhound tracks, and the difficulty bookies had of winning at the "red hots," the changing landscape of sports betting, and the difficulty Victorian bookmakers had as they saw their clients slip through their fingers to the Darwin bookmakers, due to legislative inaction by successive State Governments.