Punter takes bookies to high court after refusing to pay out his winning £274,000 bet a year later

One punter has decided to take the bookies to court after winning more than £270,000 on a bet.

Over the years, many punters have made huge profits betting on sports such as football and horse racing.

However, for Dylan Phelan, 25, from the Republic of Ireland, the story is slightly different.

After backing two long-shot horses that he helped to train, Phelan managed to win €320,000 (£274,000) from a €60 bet.

However, the bookies are now refusing to hand over his winnings.

As a result, Phelan has decided to take Ladbrokes to high court in a bid to finally cash in on his winning bet.

Speaking on RTÉ Radio 1, he said: "I just thought that the horses were turning a corner a bit personally. They were feeling a bit better, they were overpriced on the day. I thought I would take advantage and take a chance.

"I was fortunate that it worked out because nine times out of 10 it doesn't. It's a one in a million thing that will probably never happen again. I couldn't believe what was happening. I nearly forgot about the bet but then it all hit me at once. I was on cloud nine."

It has been claimed that Ladbrokes stated that the races Phelan put money on, which happened in Limerick last year, are still subject to an inquiry by an Irish state body.

In a statement to the Racing Post, the betting company said: "The IHRB is conducting an ongoing investigation into these races and we are awaiting the outcome before settling bets related to this investigation.

"When a sporting governing body is investigating the integrity of a sports event on which we have taken notable bets, we will await the outcome of those proceedings before settling bets relating to the matter under investigation.

"We take integrity matters in sport extremely seriously and our approach is entirely consistent with our terms and conditions and how we would approach any sports event under investigation."