Ealiest days of Horse Racing

In the earliest days of horse racing, the only way to know (with all certainty) which horse has won the game or whether the individual's gamble has paid off was to be physically there at the race tracks and to see the outcome of the race for himself; or at the very least, wait until the papers the next day announce the winners of the events. A player was needed to be physically present when bookies collected wagers and if the event of a winning ticket, bookies paid off dividends right at the race track too. If an individual was not there during pay-offs, chances were that he had to wave his money goodbye. Betting off track was literally unheard off then.