The local evening newspaper at that time had a particularly successful tipster and his success excited my interest. I remember well that the first horse I ever backed in my life was called Eborneezer , entered to run in a 2 mile race at Kempton Park called the Queens Prize. The horse was fit from racing over hurdles in the winter and so there were logical reasons to expect that he would run well over this marathon flat race.

Bookmakers at that time were able to take bets by mail although, of course, not from 17 year old boys. My name is John and my mother was Janet so it was so easy to place a bet in the name J. Faulkner. The method of payment was a Postal Order purchased for cash at the local Post Office. The bet was duly despatched the day before the race, the princely sum of half a crown (1/8th of £1) on the nose.

The horse won at a great price of 8/1 and I received a cheque of £1-2s-6d. This was the start of a lifetime quest to win at horseracing. Fortunately this desire to succeed also translated into the academic and subsequently the business world so I did not rely on gambling to be a source of income. This has undoubtedly proved to be a good thing. However much you try, it is extremely difficult to make a profit out of gambling unless you are a bookmaker or casino owner. Very good poker players can make a living but actually have to work harder and longer hours than most of us.

Nevertheless the struggle to predict the winner of a horse race can be very stimulating and the pleasure of getting it right makes up for all the times of getting it wrong, as long as you are sensible.

It takes a long time to learn “sensible” and a winning bet at the age of seventeen was the prelude to a painful learning process. I have translated this into practice on my How To Pick Lottery Numbers website. More of this later. For the moment three cheers for Eborneezer.