I remember it like it was yesterday.
I had spent the day working in my dead end job at a betting shop, counting down the hours until I could close up and go home.
About 20 minutes before the magical 9pm mark when I could shut up shop for the night, a customer walks in.
Fantastic!
At first I thought he might only be in the shop for a few minutes. This thought was quickly disproved.
He starts betting ridiculous sums of money on greyhounds. However, he wasn't doing it in a conventional way. He had two other friends in the shop to distract me from what he was doing.
Right before a race was due to start he rushed to the till and slapped his selection down. As we had to check if we could accept large bets on greyhound races with head office, there was a rush to get it through.
This tactic is known as a slow count. The customer places the bet just before the race starts. If the greyhound is nowhere near the front, they will leave the shop without paying, leaving you short of money. If it wins they will demand payment immediately.
It was illegal, but as I had never encountered this before, I was oblivious to what was going on!
