Fifty years ago, jackpot fever swept the country as thousands of punters thronged race courses throughout the country in their search for the mythical pot of gold.
The vision of Bay of Plenty Racing Club President Mr WS Holland and live wire club administrator Ian McEwan, which kicked off with a modest pool of just $733 on the 22nd March 1969, gripped the country until the Government changed the rules around five years later.
The old sweepstake betting which was in vogue before the turn of the (twentieth) century, had never been abolished, so jackpot betting was legal as long as the entire pool was redistributed to the investors.