If you have been sports betting online for a while, chances are you’ve heard of Billy Walters. If you haven’t, you’re in luck – today you’re going to learn about someone who can only be described as the best sports bettor of all time.
Still, not convinced? Consider this – Mr. Walters made over $1 million in a round of golf, over $3 million for a Super Bowl bet, and that’s only the tip of the iceberg. But, if you want to know more, you’ll have to keep reading to learn the rest of his story.
Mr. Walters grew up in a small Kentucky town with about 1,600 residents called Munfordville. His mom was an alcoholic and was never around so young Billy and his siblings were raised by his grandmother. His dad made a living playing poker and his uncle gambled professionally as well. With this background, it’s easy to see that Billy had gambling in his blood.
So, it comes as no surprise that he got his first taste at an early age – we’re talking the age of 9. Even at this age, young Billy already had a job – a paper route – and he took all the money he saved and bet that the Dodgers would lose to the Yankees in the 1955 World Series. Unfortunately, he lost and Billy had to cough up all the money that he’d painstakingly earned.
But, this loss didn’t sour him against gambling. In fact, some would say that it did the opposite. And, things weren’t always easy either, he suffered a lot of losses. In fact, he lost his home a couple of times because of bad bets. And, as you can imagine, he lost his much more than his house during his gambling pursuits, he also damaged quite a few personal relationships.
After his second wife left him, he began running both his own car dealership and a bookmaking service as well. But, since the latter was illegal in Kentucky, he decided to try his fortune somewhere this pastime was legal, the City of Sin, Las Vegas, Nevada.
This transition wasn’t a smooth one and he faced many obstacles. But, moving to Las Vegas was the first step into building what would become a betting syndicate that rakes in millions of dollars every year. His successes also gained him the reputation of being the richest sports bettor in history.
This betting syndicate – ACME Group Trading – makes huge bets on sports. In fact, on an average day, Billy makes approximately $2 million in bets. During an interview he did for 60 Minutes, he made over $1 million in just a couple of minutes. Overall, Billy makes about $15 million per year betting on sports and his winning streak has been going strong for almost 40 years. This holds true for every year except 2013 when he posted a loss.
Billy makes so much money now that, when things aren’t going in his favor, he bets on the opposite side so that he can push the odds to where he wants them. This is a power that most bettors can only dream of and one that only money can buy. The problem is, this power also gets you a lot of attention. And, in Billy case’s it was from mobsters, the IRS, and the feds, which explains why he’s in some trouble now, but that’s a story for another day.
