Gambling does not have to be a single activity. In fact most gamblers are going to gamble with others whether it is at a table, on horses, or through other means. Almost anything can have a bet placed on it. Some gamblers have made money simply betting on the outcome of a workplace decision such as who will be the next person to be promoted. Famous gambles or gamblers make it into the list because of the success of such actions. The Trodmore Gang is a group of unknown gamblers or more accurately perhaps, swindlers. The identity of this gang has never been found, which makes it all the more interesting considering the sports betting swindle they created.
The Trodmore Gang made one of the biggest gambles when they courted a UK newspaper to run a story. The date was 1 August 1898. The UK newspaper was The Sportsman known for running racecard information on horses in races. The gang obtained their name because of the Trodmore Hunt. The newspaper was running results for runners and riders that were jumping horses. The meeting was at Trodmore Hunt in Cornwall.
The results of the day’s jumping were put in the paper the day after the meeting. Since The Sportsman was a reputable paper it also meant that other publications like Sporting Life ran the same results in order to provide their readers with who won during the contest.
What makes this such an interesting gamble and makes the “Trodmore Gang” some of the most infamous gamblers in history is the fact that several bookmakers actually took bets on the results for the race. These were not insignificant bets either. Quite a few who bet on the results managed to win a significant payout.
The trouble with the results and the entire situation of bets from many famous sports gamblers of the time was that the race did not exist. The meeting was never held. The gang created a major win because of all the bets placed on fake races. The members walked away with a wonderful payday by setting up a gamble on a sports race that was pure fiction.
Despite the results and the reputation of The Sportsman it was found out that the races did not exist. Even though the swindlers involved in the scam were not found, it was known that the editor of The Sportsman was compromised. He was in some way persuaded to run the fake results. Perhaps it was to make a profit by betting on a known outcome. Perhaps it was too many debts to the wrong type of gang. All that is known is that the editor received the results via wire and then listed them in the newspaper. Thousands of pounds were stolen by the gang. In addition, these unknown gamblers could have made much more if there was not a tiny misprint that did expose the scam. So who the Trodmore Gang was we may never know, but they are certainly well known as the best sports bettors to pull off a fake race.