It's no coincidence that the most successful athletes are the most competitive. That's what makes them so rich. Unfortunately, the only thing that comes close to duplicating that rush of their athletic exploits is putting that money on the line. A lot of money. That's why it's not surprising so many athletes love to gamble ... and develop gambling problems. Risking it all on one play is what these ultra-competitors live for. Of course, it usually doesn't end the way they imagine it will. We gathered some of the most legendary tales involving prominent athletes and their wagers, ranging from the insane, to the silly, to the tragic.
A road trip card game turned ugly with, according to the sources, Arenas tried to get out of paying Crittenton a $25,000 pot. When Crittenton threatened to shoot him in the knee, Arenas brought three loaded handguns into the Wizards locker room, placed them in front of Crittenton's locker, and left a note reading 'pick one.' Crittenton allegedly drew his own gun (or threw one at Arenas, depending on who you believe). Arenas was charged with possession of an unlicensed pistol, which is a felony in Washington D.C., and he ended up getting a sentence of two-years probation and 30 days in a halfway house. Crittenton was given a year probation for his role in the incident.
Jaromir Jagr acknowledged Wednesday that he made mistakes when he lost $500,000 betting through an Internet gambling site, but he insisted he paid the debt four years ago and did nothing illegal. Jaromir Jagr remains one of the most iconic players to ever play the NHL. He was not only a great player but a player with a personality and character. Therefore, Inspired Gaming have created this six-reel by four-row slot, with 4069 paylines, as tribute to the Czech sports legend. Jaromir Jagr (Hockey). Jagr accumulated his massive gambling debts at two online casinos over the course of several years but was unable to pay the entire amount at once. Since he hadn’t made.
Jaromir Jagr reportedly agreed to pay $450,000 several years ago to settle a debt with an Internet gambling site. Jagr, now of the Washington Capitals, owed more than $500,000, but William Caesar.
Antoine Walker's Bounced Checks
Antoine Walker made more than $100 million in his career, but lost nearly all of it through extravagant spending on custom suits for every game, dinners for his entire team, financially supporting up to seventy of his friends and family members, and, of course, gambling. Walker had racked up $822,500 in gambling debts between three Las Vegas casinos, and when he tried to pay off the debt using a checking account with insufficient funds, he was arrested. At a casino. He filed for bankruptcy in 2010.Floyd Mayweather's Big Wins
Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s nickname isn't 'Money' just because he's good at boxing. In the past year, he's tweeted pictures of his betting slips from a $100,000 wager he place on Duke to win the first half of their Sweet 16 game against Arizona (he won $90,909) and another $41,000 bet on the second half of a Bulls-Hawks game. (He won $37,272.75 for that). Those are just the bets we know about (and that's he's won.) It's a good wager that his gambling goes much deeper than that.Jaromir Jagr Instagram
An MVP Is Kicked Out Of Football
Paul Hornung was a Heisman Trophy winner and NFL MVP in 1961, and was a member of four World Champion Green Bay Packer teams, including the first Super Bowl winner. But Hornung missed the entire 1963 season, along with fellow NFL star Alex Karras, when he was banned from the league for betting on football games. Hornung and Karras both bet between $100 and $500 on multiple NFL and NCAA games. Hornung apologized and swore off gambling, but credits the lobbying of coach Vince Lombardi for getting him reinstated to the league.Kenny McKinley's Suicide
Kenny McKinley was a young and talented Broncos receiver who killed himself last fall, shortly after an injury ended his football season. It was later learned that had borrowed $65,000 from a former teammate to payoff his extensive gambling debts, including $40,000 owed to Las Vegas casinos, and the mounting money problems had contributed to his depression.Charles Oakley's Dice War With Tyrone Hill
Toronto's Charles Oakley and Philadelphia's Tyrone Hill were both kicked out of a 2000 preseason game when Oakley slapped Hill in the mouth during warmups. It turns out Hill owed Oakley $54,000 from a dice game and was slow to pay up. Later that same season, Oakley was suspended again after throwing a basketball at Hill face during a shootaround. Hill eventually settled up, but because of his 'coward move,' Oakley insisted that he pay double.Jaromir Jagr's Secret Shame
Back in 1997, Jagr ran up a $500,000 line of credit from a Belize-based sports gambling website. When he stopped making payments on his debts, the owner of the site leaked the story to the media. Jagr immediately restarted payments, and thanks to the public shaming, the debt was eventually settled. He had also settled an additional $350,000 debt with another gambling enterprise and fought with the IRS, who issued a $3.27 million lien against him in for his unpaid taxes back in 2001.Charles Barkley's $10 Million 'Non-Problem'
In 2006, Charles Barkley admitted to ESPN that he feels that he has a gambling problem that had cost him close to $10 million. A year later, Barkley told ESPN he won $700,000 in one weekend betting on the Super Bowl and playing blackjack. He also claims he once lost $2.5 million in six hours. In 2008, Barkley almost faced formal criminal charges over a $400,000 debt to the Wynn Casino, which he promptly re-paid. A little later that year, Barkley said that had sworn off gambling at least temporarily. However, even though he admitted to being addict, Barkley has said that he doesn't need to quit because unlikely some people he can 'afford to gamble.'The Mets' Man On The Inside
Longtime New York Mets clubhouse manager Charlie Samuels is currently under investigation by the NYPD and the Queens DA for betting on baseball games, organizing a gambling ring, providing insider tips in regards to each game, and using the Mets bank accounts to cover his own debts. He is also being investigated for stealing memorabilia from the team to sell to collectors. The Mets only paid Samuels around $80,000 a year in salary, but his tax forms indicate he had an income of at least eight times that. Wiretaps have produced recordings of Samuels making illegal bets on various sports, and mob associates talking about how helpful Samuels' inside information is. Samuels was fired at the conclusion of last season after the investigation became public.Gilbert Arenas & Javaris Crittenton's Gun 'Battle'
A road trip card game turned ugly with, according to the sources, Arenas tried to get out of paying Crittenton a $25,000 pot. When Crittenton threatened to shoot him in the knee, Arenas brought three loaded handguns into the Wizards locker room, placed them in front of Crittenton's locker, and left a note reading 'pick one.' Crittenton allegedly drew his own gun (or threw one at Arenas, depending on who you believe). Arenas was charged with possession of an unlicensed pistol, which is a felony in Washington D.C., and he ended up getting a sentence of two-years probation and 30 days in a halfway house. Crittenton was given a year probation for his role in the incident.