Yet he absolutely shone in the stable husbandry department. At Swift's he looked after the famed sprinter Decoy Boy and when he moved to Michael Oliver's yard he was given responsibility for another star - West Tip, winner of the 1986 Aintree Grand National.
You need your wits about you when following Ingram's fortunes. Watch his horses closely and watch the betting, but he won't really swing into action on the new track until after the Yuletide festivities.
He explained: "There are so many entries at Lingfield at the moment that horses can get balloted out. After Christmas, the fields should cut up and we'll get going."
Ingram is never afraid to put his money where his mouth is but finds that his reputation has made him a bit of a marked man.
"I recently took Cricketers Club up to Southwell, where he was drawn 16 of 16. I had £100 on him and the bookies cut him from 16-1 to 8-1. It must be my face.
"His jockey, Adrian Nicholls, reported he was travelling so well that he couldn't tuck him in, yet seven furlongs at Lingfield should do him. He will be a certainty to win, I can assure you."
Another to watch from Wendover stables is Sudden Flight, an ex-Ed Dunlop inmate who cost Ingram £13,000. "If I find the right race for her she will be a nap selection, I promise," the trainer added.
Stromsholm, who ran on the Polytrack at Lingfield last Thursday, is also a hopeful. "A definite winner in the long run. Young Chris Catlin, who rode him, thinks he will get a mile-and-a-half.
"And don' t forget my old favourites like Clonoe and Tuigamala, who will be winning their share, plus a nice two-year-old, No Illusions, who will be seen out later."
Another secret weapon in the Epsom training armoury is that the centre has its own Polytrack, so horses are experienced on the surface before they get to the races.
Ingram said: "It is five furlongs and the best training spin in the country. There are only about 230 horses in Epsom and the gallops are not overused. At Newmarket, the gallops are chock-a-block; the same at Lambourn.
"Ed Dunlop is a very good handler but Sudden Flight has definitely thrived since she joined me from Newmarket. There is so much space and she doesn't have to queue up and wait to go on the training grounds. She's loving it."
Ingram genuinely loves his horses. He does not look on them merely as a means of taking money from the bookies.
He is also happy to report that Joe N' Jack is still alive and well and living with his cousin at nearby Cobham and, at 14, is still in action in the showjumping arena.
"I shall remember him for a long time," Ingram said. "And so will a lot of other people!"
