“Reliability and Liberality” Billy Pearson's motto
Sydney Sportsman 6 September 1916
When people came to Billy Pearson’s Stand 111 at Randwick, they knew if their bets were accepted they would be honoured. His motto of “Reliability and Liberality” held true, for Pearson had his finger on the pulse of a very broad range of punters who trusted him. Starting out in the mid 1880’s, he slowly built his reputation. Making his way up through the ranks, moving his operation from the saddling yard, leger reserve, the flat to the paddock until being seen as one of Sydney’s most respected bookies.* After working as a bookie for more than four decades, Pearson moved his interests away from the ring and into horse ownership. When it came time to find a trainer, he had access to the best in the business. As far as Pearson was concerned, the best trainer at Randwick was Frank McGrath. McGrath trained some horses for Pearson prior to Amounis but almost from the moment Pearson wanted McGrath to find him a good racer, everything changed when Amounis entered his stable. The gelding had not been overly successful with either Joe Cook, who purchased him at auction as a Kia-Ora bred yearling or Paddy Wade who sold him to Pearson before going over to England.
* Australian Town and Country Journal 2 August 1905
There has been many a trainer blessed with a wonderful horse who have not been blessed with an equally wonderful owner. Some owners have proved themselves to be nothing short of disgraceful. Being an ex-bookie does not automatically make you a great owner with the oscillating personality of Sol Green springing to mind. Billy Pearson from day one was that owner who understood the trainer was often in a better position to make a decision on where to place a horse, what jockey to put on that horse and how the betting should go. With minimal interference, Pearson gave Frank McGrath a free hand with Amounis, resulting in an enormous return for all concerned. In short, it would be Frank McGrath taking care of all business and betting, taking out his expenses and slice of the take and sending the remaining bootie to Pearson. You could almost imagine McGrath saying his prayers at night in front of a lit candle and small photo of his patron, "...and God Bless Billy Pearson, please keep him safe."
* Australian Racing Museum
Dutch Jewish immigrant Levi Vandenberg built the Courthouse Hotel in Forbes in 1863 at the height of the gold rush. With its wide timber verandas adorned with iron columns and lacework, was seen as one of the better hotels in town. Hopeful prospectors swelled Forbes’ population to 65,000 during its peak gold rush period but by 1880 the town was well in decline. Levi Vandenberg married Phoebe Isaacs and among their large family were two sons Louis and Samuel. The Courthouse Hotel was taken over by Lou after Levi’s passing in May 1894. Lou sold the Courthouse Hotel six years later to Charles McPhillamy who renamed it in the founding family’s honour. Levi’s other son Sam, was attracted to the racecourse and became one of Sydney’s best known bookies. He married Maude Wall and they had two children Ernest and Noni. Bookies Sam Vandenberg and Billy Pearson became good friends as did their families. Their lives were one of horses, racing, horses, bookmaking, horses and gambling.
Sam Vandenberg died of Spanish Flu in 1919 however his wife Maude continued on with her love affair of punting. Their son Ernie Vandenberg built his reputation as a bookie, particularly with the ponies. By the mid 1920s, Maude Vandenberg became truly terrifying. She constantly upped the ante to the point of entering the ring in an almost gladiatorial manner. Seasoned bookies being used to fielding sizable bets, found themselves in pitched battle some afternoons with “Madame X”, as she was being named in the press. Many reports from 1926 through to 1930 describe Vandenberg as easily the highest waging female punter in Australia. In reality, her bets were often astronomical and there would have been very few in Australia betting anywhere near her level, male or female. For many, these bets were nearly always associated with Amounis. Yet there were many occasions where Vandenberg slaughtered the bookies without her favourite horse. One such occasion occurred at Randwick in May 1930 when she took on some of the most powerful bookies in Sydney and walked away with close on £10,000. To put that in some perspective, at this juncture in Australia’s economic history, the average worker, or those lucky enough to have a job, were fortunate to be bringing home £3 per week. Maude Vandenberg brought home the equivalent to 70 workers annual income in a single afternoon…tax free.*
* The Truth 18 May 1930 – Randwick 17 May 1930 – Now Sweet in the James Barnes Stakes – this is all in pounds - Jack Molloy 4000 to 1000 - Jim Hackett 600 to 100, 100 to 25 (x2), 80 to 20 (x3), WM McDonald 400 to 100, JH Sears 400 to 100, R Evans 200 to 50, Frank Alldrift 400 to 100, Joe Matthews 2000 to 500. R Catton 200 to 50 & J Mandel 200 to 50
Ernest Wall Vandenberg was hauled into court by the Tax Commissioner in 1933 to answer a few curly questions put to him under oath concerning his betting. Believing Vandenberg may have dodged a £4,000 tax bill, the Commissioner was keen for him to cough up. However, the whole thing became a little murky when deciding if Vandenberg waged these bets in his professional capacity as a bookie or a punter. If as a bookmaker then tax would be liable, if as a punter he was entitled to keep the money tax free. Ernie Vandenberg claimed all his bets were laid as a punter using only his own private funds. Who saw that argument coming from the defence? But what came out in this trial kept the jury and judge riveted somewhere between gobsmacked and incredulous.
It transpired Ernie Vandenberg scored £16,550 between 1926 and 1930 on just Amounis winning. Yet this only gave you a hint of what his mother, Frank McGrath and Billy Pearson may have been doing over the same period. How Amounis made his stable wealthy becomes evident when it was explained on 29 different occasions Ernie Vandenberg backed Amounis and won handsomely 22 times. Judge Halse Rogers, presiding over the case listened as Vandenberg, and later Billy Pearson and particularly Maude Vandenberg, explained their pattern of betting. In a modern day valuation, it was millions. What is more, this level of betting was being explained as if such a day at the races be the most natural thing in the world. Many of the jury were starting to sweat just listening to the retelling of events. It transpired, Ernie Vandenberg often placed bets for Billy Pearson.
* Newcastle Morning Herald Miner’s Advocate 15 September 1933
Another aspect of the betting on Amounis coming out in this trial was the open acknowledgement of no bets being placed without first receiving information from either Billy Pearson or Frank McGrath. In other words, like all stables, for want of a better description, the backing of Amounis from the moment he entered McGrath’s stable, the syndicate comprised McGrath, Pearson and the Vandenbergs. As Ernie Vandenberg explained under oath,
“I backed Amounis from the first race he ever won for Mr. Pearson, and I never backed him without getting information from him. Sometimes I backed the horse away from the course but mostly on the course.” Truth, 24 September 1933
It also came out under cross examination, Ernie Vandenberg’s bets were very separate from those placed by his mother. Understanding this trial was dealing solely with the tax liability of Ernie Vandenberg and whether or not his bets were placed as a punter or as a bookie. What is interesting is the complete lack of reference to the Phar Lap – Amounis double. His mother was supposed to have collected £20,000. Despite Billy Pearson, Maude Vandenberg and Jim Hackett all in the witness box and the double in 1930 still being viewed as extraordinary, there was not a peep about it. What is spelled out clearly at Ernie Vandenberg's court hearing, Maude Vandenberg was a formidable punter. This group of the Vandenbergs, Pearson and McGrath raked in a fortune on Amounis. Maude Vandenberg amassed £50,000 on Amounis even before Phar Lap won the 1930 Melbourne Cup.
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