Bookmaker almost court out as Waterhouse colt doubles up
The Age
Tuesday February 9, 2010
IN HIS 40 years as a bookmaker, Michael Eskander maintains that his most vexing problem came in 1995.Eskander's firm, Betstar, produced its early Caulfield and Melbourne Cup doubles charts and on the third day of betting, a punter walked in to take a number of doubles all ending with a maiden galloper from Sydney.The punter took numerous doubles into the one horse with the worst result being a $4.2 million payout.Eskander, at the time, thought it was easy money for his firm.Months later the Caulfield Cup was won by Taufan's Melody, who was an average result for bookmakers, but Eskander's punter was one of those still alive in the double.As he looked through the list of Melbourne Cup runners, Eskander was relieved to find that his one-out selection in the Melbourne Cup had not been paid up.Three weeks later, on Victoria Derby day, he realised that the punter's selection was Nothin' Leica Dane, the favourite for the Derby.On Derby day the long-striding three-year-old justified his favouritism by comfortably winning the classic.Then, hours later, trainer Gai Waterhouse, in a rare move, paid a late entry fee for the three-year-old to start in the Melbourne Cup, reactivating the punter's doubles from months earlier.Eskander says that the double was worth $1.3 million but where does the liability lay if the horse wins after the bet was off but then it's suddenly on again.Eskander mulled over the problem but any need for legal action was avoided when the Nothin' Leica Dane finished a brave second behind Doriemus in the Melbourne Cup.On the Sunday before the Cup, Eskander toyed with the idea of seeking out a Queen's Counsel to get a likely scenario if the colt had won and the punter was to pursue him through the courts.But before lifting the phone, with Eskander's entire staff working on the Sunday before the Cup, a quick look at the ledgers quickly aroused the attention of the bookmaker's finance director."He came into me rather sheepishly and said: 'I'm sorry I've made a little oversight on the ledgers. That bloke did take all the doubles but, before you ring any legal eagles, the cheque bounced twice, so the wagers shouldn't be recorded because the bets were off months ago'," Eskander recalled.But, to this day, Eskander believes it would have been an interesting court battle to see if $1.2 million had to be paid to a punter whose bet had finished but then reactivated.
© 2010 The Age
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