Punting Profiles: Felipe Ysmael
He liked to be called The Babe and Felipe Ysmael had enough money, made from steel and benefits gained in Filipino politics, that nearly everybody adhered. He had so much scratch that it was often said that $1000 to him had no more meaning than a single cent does to most. And this was the late sixties, a time when decimal currency had just landed in this country and $1000 was worth a whole lot more than it is today. Yes, Ysmael like the projection of gentility, youth and import that the moniker The Babe exuded. But it was the title the newspapermen bestowed upon him- The Filipino Fireball- that more accurately described the manner that launched him into the public eye, his gambling. Ysmael hit Australian racetracks from seemingly nowhere, shining bright before burning up quickly.
But, unlike most big time gamblers, it wasn’t the drying up of cash that bought about his demise or his farewell from the game. In the end, it was his penchant for secretiveness and the heavy fist of racing authority that saw The Fireball extinguished.
Australiawas in transition when The Babe made his way to Australia. As a nation, we were traveling from the cozy bastion of conservatism to the then unknown plains of social democracy and moral enlightenment. The Babe was a Filipino millionaire who had been educated in California and had seen the world and who got his thrills by betting the horses. Always prepared, The Babe built himself a fortress in the surrounds of Melbourne, bought himself a team of quality thoroughbreds, hired commission agents and trainers and laid the foundations for his racing and gambling operations, doing his utmost on all fronts to hide his identity and proximity.
It was 1967 when Ysmael and his acolytes became known to those in the racing game. He bet in large amounts with a number of bookies over the Doncaster-Sydney Cup carnival and found himself engaged in battle with Jack Waterhouse, a man of fine bookmaking pedigree but a satchel swinger without the bottle for large wagers as his brother Bill. Jack informed Bill of Ysmael and his associates and in doing so, got the wheels turning for what is still regarded as the largest personal wagering battle of the Australian turf.
It was a titanic battle between two mammoths of the ring, a war that still leaves those new to the story fixated and still has those who were there tingling with excitement. It was a struggle that lifted both men to extraordinary heights and a tussle that shook racing to the core.
The first shot was fired when Waterhouse traveled down to Melbourne. The Babe’s right hand man Frank Ford placed some large wagers and was treated with contempt by Waterhouse, ignoring the sum through leaving his prices untouched. Waterhouse had reeled in Ysmael, the Filipino egotistically stung by the ploy.
Waterhouse was soon invited to Ysmael’s estate, a meeting to lay down the ground rules of the series of title fights that lay ahead. With the formalities, Waterhouse prepared to leave. The Babe suggested a bet would be a pleasant way to see the afternoon through. Waterhouse, reluctant, agreed. After six races on a mildly pleasant Victorian spring afternoon, The Babe had lost $550,000 on the provincials. He then asked for $200,000 at 7/2 on a long forgotten runner. The horse saluted. Waterhouse had also got the nod in the first exchange.
As the betting escalated and the newspapers became increasingly excitable, the game began to change with The Babe attempting to hide his betting behind the façade of an Asian betting syndicate. The rules of exchange had changed, The Babe was now wanting to bet under pseudonyms and over the telephone. The size of the bets was causing such publicity that Waterhouse agreed to not record the actual sizes in the ledger.
One of the great weaknesses of Ysmael was his suspicious nature. It cost him, often, his money and mostly, his reputation. In 1967, Ysmael had wagered heavily on the odds-on pop in the Derby into Red Handed. When his good thing lost the Derby, he not only lost his cash but had cast his hand for the Melbourne Cup. When Ysmael hit the ring, Waterhouse caught his eye. He lifted his arm and wound out Red Handed, from 4/1 to 9/2, removing it from the joint favoritism it had earned with General Command. Ysmael had $50,000 on General Command, believing Waterhouse had gotten to Red Handed. The mind games had worked. Red Handed saluted. While his losses hurt him financially, it was his victories that ruined him long term. Plunges on his own horses, such as that on debutant Red Diver, led to many, including the racing powermen, to think he was working hot.
Ego had started working against him and in the end, it would be his downfall. His big betting had bought out the wowsers and forced those in power to put the clamps on the great vice. Ysmael had made bets to win over $1,000,000 and it made those in power nervous. The powers running the VRC eventually stitched him up over an Ysmael steed called Follow Me, who ran last on debut. Ysmael was disqualified and was so disillusioned that he sold-up his operation and left the state.
It was a victory to Waterhouse but it was not a knockout victory. He had not finished The Babe financially like he had others.
Ysmael never bet in those amounts, at least in the public forum, again. He took to receiving plum posts from his political allies in the Philippines and attempted to retire from the public eye. He was snuffed by his ego and his sensitivity. He didn’t grease the wheels of power and it all got very messy when the moralists latched on.
Regardless of the finale, there is little doubt that The Babe bet as much as anybody who has graced the Australian turf and stands alongside Kerry Packer as a giant of the punt. He entranced Australia race followers of the time with his gargantuan bets and the meticulous manner in which his wagering was carried out. He was as common as all amateurs with his ego driven gambling but he was a rarity among heavy hitting – he walked away intact. The Filipino Fireball, he certainly was. For a brief period, at any rate.
This story was first published on Punting Ace in 2008
