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May 12 - The news that Charles Barkley has gambled away $10 million (his reported figure) at casinos follows John Daly's revelation that he lost $50-$60 million gambling on slots. If you think they're the only professional athletes who bet to the point of addiction, guess again.
It's funny how long it takes for a scandal to gather steam in America. Years ago it was painfully apparent that many baseball players were on the juice, yet the steroids scandal took years to reach critical mass because the average fan couldn't put two and two together and see that their favorite baseball player was putting on pounds of muscle and transforming himself into a gorilla on an annual basis.
Well, the scandal of pro athletes gambling away fortunes is just around the corner. It's one thing for Daly and Barkley to lose fortunes in casinos, after all it's their money and they can do what they like with it. In fact, both are unrepentant and Barkley doesn't even think he has a gambling problem. His solution: spend $1,000 a hand at blackjack instead of $20,000. Not exactly one of the twelve steps. But it would be quite another thing for pro athletes to try and recoup their losses by betting on sports, and here's a shocking thought, betting on their own games.
Remember that gambling is supposed to be entertainment first and foremost; a great way to unwind, have a little fun, and sometimes to make some cool extra cash. We at the Insider love gambling online and wouldn't have it any other way, but losing $10 million at blackjack warrants a little introspection and self-loathing. Losing $50 million is just white-trash dumb.
So what happens when you've got a gambling problem, cannot stop yourself from losing a fortune, and you happen to be a professional athlete?
Ever wonder why Michael Jordan stopped playing basketball for three years? Was it really to become a baseball player, or was there a big scandal looming that needed to blow over? It's a legitimate question, and remains only a question, but consider the well publicized fact that Jordan gambled away a fortune in his time as an NBA superstar. He is big friends with Barkley, although Jordan's weakness was betting on golf for a small fortune per round. Furthermore, in our experience, when a gambler tells you he lost $x it's one of the safest bets to assume that the real figure is somewhere closer to double $x.
Betting on golf is very common, much more common than say one of the world's best putters missing a 3-footer to continue a playoff with Tiger Woods. No one is suggesting that the fix was in, but Big John Daly is going to find that he is watched closely in the future. The real reason Daly missed that dribbler? He had Vegas slots on his mind. He drove straight from the playoff to Nevada and dropped the entire paycheck plus another $500,000 in credit, and probably still made it back to his trailer that night in time for Pabst Blue Ribbon sundowners.
Pro athletes love to gamble. You see them all the time at the high stakes poker tables throwing money away. You see them with millions of dollars in play at Las Vegas blackjack tables. And yet no one has ever suggested that a few points are shaved now and then in meaningless regular season NBA games, or that a careless INT returned for a TD in 'garbage-time' could have been avoided. Who cares if the Knicks lose by 20 or by 10? The bottom line is that results are unaffected, no one gets hurt, it's just that the spread isn't covered.
There's no hard evidence to suggest that this has happened, and for good reason. There is no way that the NBA, NFL, or especially MLB would want this to become anything other than an "internal matter". The reputation of American sports as good clean non-corporate fun might be tarnished. The fantasy-land illusion that athletes are role models and somehow heroic might come crashing down.
Look how the NBA stars read to handicapped chillen! Marvel at NFL stars doling out soup to the homeless! Cheer as baseball stars jack home runs for the love of the game! We'd hate to compromise this silly dream with the sad reality that there will be a gambling addict who is a superstar athlete who also runs out of cash and does what he has to in order to get that cash back. We say "there will be" but come on now, don't you think deep down that it's already happened?
Related Gambling Articles:
- Online Casino Host Will Eat Her Hat - 05-14-06
- Online Casino Gambling Portal Launches Bonus Guide - 05-13-06
- Charlie Sheen Is Online Gambling Man Of The Year - 05-12-06
- Online Casino Provider To Launch Playboy Casino - 05-12-06
- Online Casino And Poker Provider Consolidates Brands - 05-11-06
- Online Casino Software Provider RTG Ups The Ante - 05-10-06
- Online Casino Offers $500 Free Spins Promotion - 05-10-06
- Online Casino Watchdog Launches 100 Seals Campaign - 05-09-06
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