Professional gambler – two words that typically conjure up images of a sexy lifestyle, wads of cash and few working hours. The reality however, is much different. We tracked down UK based professional gambler Alex King (featured in the Racing Post) to get his take on what it takes to be successful, what shape the industry is in at present, and where it is headed. Bancroft distinguishes between three types of professional gamblers: the 'free-floating professional', the 'established legit' and the 'recreational gentleman'. The California Gold Rush of 1849 created one of the largest draws for migrant gamblers and San Francisco soon became the gambling hotspot of the west.
Professional gambler – two words that typically conjure up images of a sexy lifestyle, wads of cash and few working hours. The reality however, is much different. We tracked down UK based professional gambler Alex King (featured in the Racing Post) to get his take on what it takes to be successful, what shape the industry is in at present, and where it is headed.
SBO:Hi Alex. How long have you been betting professionally?
AK:About 7 years.
SBO:Which sports do you mainly focus on?
AK:I focus on 2 sports; boxing and racing. Predominantly horse racing and a little bit of boxing. I think it is a fatal mistake to try and bet on too many things. You should be an expert in one field rather than try and split your focus on too many things. I would say two sports at the absolute max. The only reason I bet on boxing and racing is because boxing is relatively easy to keep a focus on. Splitting your forces is a big mistake and work/life balance is important.
SBO:What does your daily routine look like?
AK:I try and get up early and I will focus on 2 meetings a day tops. Traditional pro-gamblers aim to find a value price, try and get 300 pounds on a horse, get told they can have 3 pence on, miss the price then drive themselves insane because they have missed the price. I look how horses trade from their Betfair SP compared to how they trade in running. In layman’s terms I’m looking to back a horse at say 3.00 on Betfair, in the expectation the horse will hit 2.00 and then either have a free bet, or take a guaranteed profit on the race. I’m treating horses like individual share prices now and what I am trying to do is to just predict how the market is going to go once the race goes in play. This saves me having to chase non-existent prices and call bookmakers who are unwilling to lay a bet because they are no longer confident that there pricing horse racing up correctly.
SBO:Where do you bet? Course/exchange shop/home etc.?
AK:I’m betting from home all the time now. I can concentrate and I don’t lose research time through travelling. I keep in contact with others pro’s over skype and email during the day. It’s a little solitary, which is why it is so important to have good social connections outside of this game.
SBO:As we know, most punters fail to turn a profit, what would you say your edge has been to win consistently for so long?
AK:First of all I wouldn’t recommend professional punting to too many people, unless you have a real flair and/or a huge desire to do it. As a very famous pro-punter told me once: ‘Gambling is the only business in the world where the better you get, the harder it is.’ It’s so true. Most punters fail to make a profit because of a number of factors. A lot of people are experts on racing, but ask them if they think a horse has a 50% chance or 30% chance of winning – they simply couldn’t tell you accurately. You have to be able to evaluate a price better than the people setting the odds. You must also have a solid staking plan in place. If you can’t get those two factors right, then you are in big trouble. You also need to be able to keep a cool head and not start gambling beyond your limits. If you really want to be a pro punter you have to be ready to put some serious, serious work into it. Success takes time. I have worked in the business for such a long time and have such a good grounding in it which has helped me more than anything. I also talk on a daily basis with pro-punters and that has helped to keep me in front. But I would honestly tell people to think very, very hard before embarking on this. If I had children and my son/daughter said they wanted to do this as a profession, I would do everything in my power to dissuade them.
SBO:Do you think the betting exchanges have had a positive or negative effect on being able to turn a profit?
AK:It’s been a double edged sword. Firstly the idea of betting exchanges is a great one. Bookmakers hate them because they have made the market more competitive. Horse racing markets on Betfair are trading to 100.5% to 102%, which in terms of overround is a lot lower than fixed odds bookmakers. Bookmakers hypocritically bemoan the exchanges – I say hypocritically because you can’t have accounts with the exchanges and still moan about them – because exchanges have smashed the bookmakers’ monopoly somewhat. Exchanges have also given the punter the chance to be the layer, which is a service that only spread betting afforded you in the past. My criticism of Betfair, is that they have been allowed to monopolise the exchange market. This is completely against the interest of the consumer. There are several fixed odds bookmakers, if anyone of them decided they were going to impose a “premium charge” then you simply go to another one. Exchanges are good, we punters just need more of them.
SBO:In ten years’ time, what does the horse racing betting landscape look like for professional punters?
AK:I think it’s bleak to be honest for several reasons. Firstly the generation that are into horse racing are a dying breed. Bookmakers are taking less and less money on the sport because the younger generation want to bet on football, golf and other sports. Racing is just not bringing in the big money for the bookmakers now. It’ so hard to get bets on now, what will it be like in the future? If the government, correctly, takes the decision to heavily regulate the accursed fixed odds betting terminals – better still ban them, then the bookmakers will be forced to close shops. This will make it harder for the pro-punter as getting on in the shops is really the only way to get on nowadays. This is why I am taking my modus operandi away from the traditional methods.
SBO:What job would you liken being a professional punter to?
AK:I would say it is the poor man’s stock exchange. It can definitely be likened to financial trading.
SBO:What would you change about the game?
AK:Have you got 10 years?! Very simply I would nationalise the entire betting industry in this country. You can argue against the nationalisation of the railways or energy suppliers, but I see no valid reason why the betting industry could not be nationalised and run effectively, with the profits going back into the public purse and not in the hands of private shareholders. The whole business has become a zero sum game for the punter. If the punter wins his accounts are closed down, if he loses he can do whatever he wants. So the bookmakers are running a service whereby they can only win. This would not happen if UK gambling was run along the same lines as the Tote system in France. Why should private shareholders, many of whom are using offshore tax havens, get rich from the sport when the profits could be going directly back to the public? This would also make sure that pro-punters could get their bets on without being restricted. I would also ban FOBTs (fixed odds betting terminals)
SBO:Would you ever consider going on the other side and becoming a bookmaker?
AK:Yes. But I would want to be a really old school bookmaker. Not one who is sitting there laying 2.75 when I can back a horse back at 3.00 on the exchanges. If I was going to be a bookie I would like to be one of those who were made from different cloth. Like Stephen Little, Bill Chandler, William Hill or a Freddie Williams. Bookmakers who were willing to stick a price up and live or die by their judgement. That appeals to me, but realistically I can’t see myself with going that way.
SBO:How would you advise punters to improve their punting skills, specifically with horse racing?
AK:I believe in the validity of the saying: “There is none so wise as the experienced.” I believe you should try and learn from people who have trodden this path. It may well be that in the future I will run some seminars and I have also written a book which is currently being considered for publishing which will be called: Betting on horses in-running. This isn’t a self-serving plug on my behalf, but from my own experiences I learned first-hand from people who trod the path that I want to go down. If at all possible try and do the same. Talk to pro-punters and try to learn from them whether that be me, or someone else in the same business.
Betfair
fixed odds betting terminals
Horse Racing
Racing Post
Gambling has a long and interesting history. It’s been a popular activity for almost as long as the human race has existed, and its popularity shows absolutely no signs of slowing down. It continues to be on the up rise: partly because of the consistent improvements in the world of online gambling, and partly because it’s starting to become more socially acceptable.
Throughout its rich history, and right up until today, gambling has attracted an incredible variety of different characters. Some of these individuals are famous (or infamous) for their gambling related exploits. Trust us when we say that their stories make for extremely interesting reading. Actually, that’s why we’ve put together this section of our website, featuring biographies of some of the biggest names in gambling.
When we first started this section we focused on the pioneers and innovators who were instrumental in developing the gambling industry in one way or another. We wanted to include individuals that helped turn Las Vegas into the gambling capital of the world, and those who contributed to the evolution of online gambling. We quickly realized that there were far more stories to tell though, so we decided to expand our scope.
We now have detailed biographies on people involved in all aspects of gambling. We address those who have won big, and those who have lost it all. We’ve written about those who have found legitimate ways to win, those who have cheated and those who have engaged in outright criminal behavior. In short, we’ve covered the good, the bad and everything in between. If there’s a story to tell, we’ve told it.
You can find all our biographies listed on this page. Because there are so many, we’ve divided them into the following categories.
Key Individuals in Online Gambling Historical Gambling Figures Gambling Criminals Blackjack Legends Professional Gamblers Land Based Gambling Tycoons Notorious Gambling Cheats Poker Players Past & Present High Stakes Gamblers Big Gambling Winners
There have been many entrepreneurs and executives who have helped to shape the online gambling industry into a multi-billion dollar enterprise. Jugar bingo gratis. Many of the big names and important people from the industry could be considered genuine pioneers, and yet they often don’t get the credit they deserve. While many of them have become household names, even more of them are virtual unknowns.
The biographies in this category tell the stories of the people who have turned modern betting and gaming into what it is today. Without them, the evolution of this industry might have been very different. It’s possible that other pioneers would have stepped in to take their place, but realistically gambling sites probably wouldn’t be anywhere near as advanced as they are today.
It wouldn’t be very fun if we focused solely on those who have had a positive impact on the industry though, as the “bad guys” have far more intriguing stories to tell. This small percentage of people are responsible for damaging the industry in one way or another, but their influence is still important to learn about regardless.
Featured Biographies
DENISE COATES
The mastermind behind online gambling giant Bet365
CALVIN AYRE
The charismatic billionaire who founded Bodog
ISAI SCHEINBERG
Innovative but private, he created PokerStars
RUTH PARASOL
The driving force of PartyGaming’s success
THE SHAKED BROTHERS
Founders of 888, one of the best-known gambling sites
ANDREW BLACK
Created Betfair, the most successful betting exchange
RAY BITAR
The main man behind Full Tilt Poker
TEDDY SAGI
Creator of Playtech sports betting software
Additional Biographies
MARK BLANDFORD Founder of SportingBet SCOTT TOM Absolute Poker Co-Founder THE BEN-YITZHAK BROTHERS Founder of 888 LEE JONES PokerStars Executive ROBERT RAATGEVER Microgaming CEO MICHAEL SHACKLEFORD The Wizard of Odds VICTOR CHANDLER Founder of BetVictor JON KARL UltimateBet Co-Founder VIKRANT BHARGAVA PartyGaming Executive ANURAG DIKSHIT PartyGaming Executive GREG PIERSON UltimateBet Co-Founder
Before the online gambling pioneers, the biggest names in the gambling industry mostly consisted of people who built, owned or developed land based casinos. Those names are the inspiration for this category of bios.
Many of the people listed below started small but went on to build huge empires. Some of them had a very significant influence on the way the land-based gambling industry evolved as a whole. Their stories will grab your attention early on and keep you hooked until the very end.
Featured Biographies
BOBBY BALDWIN
President/CEO of Mirage Resorts
JOHN ASPINALL
Bookmaker & founder of the Clermont Club in London
SHELDON ADELSON
Billionaire founder of the Las Vegas Sands Corp.
PHIL RUFFIN
Owner of Treasure Island & numerous other casinos
KIRK KERKORIAN
Las Vegas tycoon, the father of the megaresort
STEVE WYNN
Owner of the Bellagio, Wynn Las Vegas, and other venues
Additional Biographies
HOWARD HUGHES Serial Entrepreneur LIM GOH TUNG Creator of the Genting Highlands DONALD TRUMP Billionaire casino owner STANLEY HO Helped develop Macau
In this category we’ve provided bios of some famous historical figures. Although most of these individuals have earned their fame from something other than gambling, gambling has still played a significant role in their lives in one way or another. The diversity of names found here highlights just how widespread the popularity of gambling has always been.
WILD BILL HICKOK KING HENRY VIII FYODOR DOSTOYEVSKY JOHN MONTAGU CASANOVA DOC HOLLIDAY GEORGE E. SMITH
Making money from gambling can be accomplished in one of three ways. The most popular way is to hope that luck is on your side. Another way would be to dedicate a huge chunk of time to learning the various skills and strategies in order to gain an edge over the bookmakers. Either of these approaches would perfectly respectable, although the second is far more likely to yield results.
The third approach is in no way respectable. It’s to cheat, and no one likes a cheater. Actually, when it comes to gambling, that’s not entirely true. Gambling cheats are usually admired by their fellow gamblers: especially when they a share a common enemy (the house). However, no one appreciates a gambler who cheats other gamblers. That’s wrong on so many levels.
The gamblers found on the list below are well known for their cheating exploits. We don’t doubt that this list would be bigger if it weren’t for the gambling cheats who were successful and gotten away with it. As much as we’d love to know THOSE stories, we probably never will.
All Biographies
RON HARRIS Rogue Employee TOMMY GLENN CARMICHAEL Slot Machine Cheat RICHARD MARCUS Inventor of “The Savannah” LOUIS COLAVECCHIO Largest Lottery Token Cheat Ever IDA SUMMERS The “Vegas Vixen” DENNIS NICKRASCH Slot Machine Cheat MONIQUE LAURENT Famous Roulette Cheat TRAN ORGANIZATION Bribed Casino Dealers
Gambling and criminals basically went hand in hand at various points in history. At times, gambling was considered an “underground” activity run by criminals. Nowadays, in general, things have changed for the better. With so much money involved in gambling, however, one might suspect that some gambling-related crimes still go on today.
In this category we’ve provided bios on some of the most interesting criminals involved in some sort of gambling scandal.
Featured Biographies
JESSE JAMES
Infamous American Outlaw and gambler
BUGSY SIEGEL
Feared mobster and casino owner
Additional Biographies
BUMPY JOHNSON Mob Boss and Bookmaker BRIAN MOLONY Embezzled millions DANIEL TZVETKOFF Violated the UIGEA ARNOLD ROTHSTEIN Kingpin of the Jewish Mob HERBERT BLITZSTEIN Loanshark & bookmaker GEORGE FREEMAN Links to Illegal Bookmaking
Poker could easily be considered one of most popular forms of gambling in the world. It has many appealing characteristics, and it strikes a good balance between luck and skill. Players with no skill at all can get lucky and beat much better players on occasion, but the truly skilled players almost always make money in the long run.
The general interest in poker is so widespread these days that successful poker players are genuine celebrities. Televised tournaments and cash games attract huge audiences, and it’s not just because people enjoy watching other people play cards. They enjoy watching how the characters at the table interact too, especially the big name players.
It’s the big name players that you’ll find here. We’ve compiled biographies on the best-known players: past and present. If you have aspirations of becoming a successful player yourself, then it wouldn’t hurt to thoroughly read these biographies in order to see what it takes to make it to the top.
Featured Biographies
PHIL IVEY
One of the best poker players of all time
PHIL HELLMUTH
Extremely successful player known as “The Poker Brat”
DAN BILZERIAN
Poker playing playboy known as “The Blitz”
CHRIS MONEYMAKER
Won the WSOP main event after qualifying online
DANIEL NEGREANU
Charismatic and popular professional poker player
VANESSA ROUSSO
One of the most successful female poker players
Additional Biographies
Tom Dwan Chris Ferguson Gus Hansen Jennifer Harman Phil Laak Erick Lindgren Doyle Brunson Brian Townsend John Juanda Annie Duke Andy Bloch Barry Greenstein Danial Cates Alan Schoonmaker Jamie Gold Barny Boatman
No casino game has ever captured the attention of so many quite like blackjack has. This relatively simple card game is intriguing on many levels, and it also happens to be the only casino game that can be genuinely beaten without resorting to cheating. A skilled blackjack player can actually gain an edge over the house by counting cards.
Advantage players have shown a strong interest in card counting for several decades now. Some skilled card counters are considered true legends for their contributions to the subject, while others have earned that title thanks to their exploits in the casino. Learn more about all these interesting characters by reading the following biographies.
KEITH TAFT
Bona-fide genius and successful counter
EDWARD THORP
Established Author and “the godfather of card counting”
KEN USTON
Successfully sued a casino for banning him
TOMMY HYLAND
Manager of the longest running counting team
Additional Biographies
MIT BLACKJACK TEAM STANFORD WONG JAMES GROSJEAN THE FOUR HORSEMAN AL FRANCESCO IAN ANDERSEN DARRYL PURPOSE JULIAN BRAUN ROBERT NERSESIAN JOHN CHANG DON SCHLESINGER
For some, the thrill of gambling is simply not enough. These people only want to gamble if they have the opportunity to win big. It’s easy to relate, as gambling obviously becomes more exciting when there’s more at stake. For the majority of us, though, our idea of big stakes may just be a few more dollars than we usually bet.
The guys listed below are on a whole different level. They are (or were) REAL high-rollers. They have gambled millions upon millions of dollars, often risking sums that most people would consider to be a fortune on single wagers.
Featured Biographies
KERRY PACKER
Media tycoon who loved to gamble for big money
WILLIAM LEE BERGSTROM
Placed some of the largest ever bets in casinos
ARCHIE KARAS
A famous gambler who went from rags to riches
NICK DANDOLOS
Won and lost huge sums of money while gambling
Professional Gamblers
For most people, gambling is nothing more than a fun activity to enjoy with friends. For a small percentage of gamblers, however, it’s a lot more than that. Professional gamblers, or those who have decided to make gambling their career, are obviously very good at what they do. Many of them also live very interesting lives.
As you might imagine, a lot of professional gamblers are very secretive. They don’t want everyone knowing how they do what they do. Nonetheless, we’ve managed to compile a few bios on some of the more colorful characters that gamble for a living.
Additional Biographies
Barney Curley Clive Holt Sidney Harris Jack Ramsden Phil Bull Bill Benter Barry Meadow Alan Woods
Most gamblers appreciate a win of any kind. We all hope to win big, of course, but even just a small win is better than no win at all. And there’s always next time, when maybe we’ll finally get that elusive win that will really change our lives. This might be based more on hope than expectation, but that’s partially what makes gambling so much fun.
Famous Gamblers Las Vegas
The people below help reassure us that our dreams can indeed come true. These are among some of the biggest gambling winners of all times. If it can happen to them, it can happen to any one of us. Right?
Gonzalo Garcia-Pelayo
Gonzalo Garcia-Pelayo is one of the most successful roulette players of all time. Tiger gaming review. He’s considered by many to be the first person to truly exploit the bias that mechanical roulette wheels can show. He invested months of his life to studying and analyzing the behavior of wheels in Spain, before winning hundreds of thousands of dollars based on his findings.
Elmer Sherwin
Slots players all over the world share the dream of one day hitting a big jackpot. A select few of them will get lucky and realize their dreams, but we doubt than anyone will ever be as lucky as Elmer Sherwin. Why would we make such an assumption? Well, it’s because he won the Megabucks Jackpot not once, but twice. He won $4.6 million in 1989, before following that up with another $21 million win 16 years later. This is a truly unbelievable story.
Conor Murphy
Conor Murphy is an inspiration to horse racing bettors. He proved that it IS possible to win big, providing you bid your time and wait for the right opportunities. His opportunity came in 2011, while working as a horse racing trainer. He identified five horses that he felt would do well in the following year’s Cheltenham Festival, and placed an accumulator accordingly. All five won, bringing him in over $1 million.
Charlie Wells
There is a great deal of uncertainty over exactly how Charlie Wells landed his big win, but some facts are known for sure. In the late 19th century, he made two trips to the Monte Carlo Casino and won the equivalent of $10 million in today’s money. This was all from roulette. He claimed to have a system, but it’s been speculated that he cheated. Maybe he just got lucky. Whatever the truth may be, he’ll always be known as the man who broke the bank at Monte Carlo.
Colin & Chris Weir
This married couple from Scotland made the headlines back in 2011 when they won the lottery. Although simply winning the lottery isn’t extraordinary, how much they won was. They won £161 million (around $240 million) to be precise. This was the highest amount ever won in the United Kingdom: an astonishing amount of money from a ticket that cost only £2.
Ashley Revell
Famous Gamblers Names
They say you have to be prepared to take big risks to win big. It’s hard to imagine anyone has ever taken this more literally than Ashley Revell did. In 2004 he sold all his possessions, and travelled from England to Las Vegas. He put everything he had ($135,300) on a single spin of the roulette wheel. He bet red, and got extremely lucky.
Cynthia Jay-Brennan
Cynthia Jay-Brennan is another Megabucks Jackpot winner. She won $35 million in 2000, which was a record at the time. This is a story in its own right, but what happened subsequently highlights just how cruel life can be. Just a few weeks after her record win, she was involved in a car accident and paralyzed from the chest down.
Famous Fictional Gamblers
Gloria MacKenzie
Gloria MacKenzie won the Powerball lottery in 2013. This wasn’t just any Powerball lottery. She won the largest undivided prize in its history, a cool $590 million. She could have had the full amount paid over 30 years, but she opted from the lump payment of $370 million. At 84 years old, we don’t think anyone could blame her for this decision!
Don Johnson
Famous Professional Gamblers Group
No, not the actor. This Don Johnson is a professional gambler who went on one of the most astonishing winning streaks ever known. During a six-month period in 2011, he took Atlantic City casinos for over $15 million. He played only blackjack, and managed to convince the casinos to change some of the game rules to his favor. This obviously helped, but he still needed a great deal of luck to win that big.