The prime minister’s horse may not have come in for the Melbourne Cup but he was a hit with the punters at the Corbould Park Racecourse on the Sunshine Coast.

November 6, 2018

Scott Morrison’s pick for the Melbourne Cup may not have come in, but on day two of his Queensland tour the prime minister was a hit with the punters.

With just minutes to spare before the running of the famous horse race in Melbourne on Tuesday, Mr Morrison made a surprise but rock star entrance at Corbould Park Racecourse in Caloundra, 100km north of Brisbane.

Pretty girls in high-heels and hats, well-tanned boys and rusted-on Liberal voters mobbed Mr Morrison as he made his way through the crowd and to the bar.

As shouts of ‘ScoMo’ rang out from the crowd, Mr Morrison chose a can of the iconic local brew, XXXX.

Beer in hand, Mr Morrison grinned and laughed with the locals as they slapped his back, snapped selfies and welcomed him to the sunshine state.

Punters could have been forgiven for thinking they’d stumbled into a Liberal Party campaign rally such was the enthusiasm for the prime minister in the general admission public area.

Mr Morrison was clearly pleased with his reception as he made his way to the betting pit, where Brisbane bookie Wayne Gennon took a $100 wager from the prime minister on mare Youngstar for the win.

“I love mugs’ money!” a laughing Mr Gennon yelled after taking the bet.

The lifelong Liberal voter was only joking, he said.

All eyes were on the big screen during the race but soon returned to a bemused Mr Morrison, as he realised he’d done his dough – Youngstar ran sixth.

It didn’t matter.

Mr Morrision was a hit with the locals and the planned charm offensive was back on track after Monday’s social media ScoMo Express fail.

The prime minister is expected to head north next, with visits planned to Rockhampton, Bundaberg, Gladstone and Mackay, taking in the marginal seats of Capricornia, Flynn and Dawson.