{"id":15068,"date":"2018-07-14T17:30:31","date_gmt":"2018-07-14T22:30:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/blog\/?p=15068"},"modified":"2023-03-22T10:06:18","modified_gmt":"2023-03-22T15:06:18","slug":"what-happens-to-the-biggest-gambling-losers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/blog\/what-happens-to-the-biggest-gambling-losers\/","title":{"rendered":"What Happens to the Biggest Gambling Losers?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Someone
Image Credit: dreamstime.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Part of the allure of gambling is the chance to win big, but also the thrill of a big risk. While we all know that the house is designed to win, some of these players were absolute whales. Despite heavy losses, they continued gambling. While some of them could take it in their stride, others did crazy things to try and cover it up. Either way, it definitely puts wins and losses in perspective.<\/p>\n

Creating this ranking can be rather tricky, particularly because names are rarely revealed for big losses at leading casinos unless they make the news. At top casinos in Las Vegas and Macau, high rollers can easily win or lose tens of millions of dollars over the course of an evening or weekend, with names and losses rarely recorded.<\/p>\n

That’s why these are just some of the more high-profile losses where the people have come forward to discuss what happened, or the circumstances became newsworthy:<\/p>\n

1. Learn Something New: Chun Lei “Samrostan” Zhu ($15 million)<\/h2>\n
\"Chun
Image Credit: pokertexas.net<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

How much would you pay to learn how to play poker? Well, Chun Lei Zhu, also known as Samrostan, Patpatman and Patpatpanda, lost about $15 million while he learned the ropes playing high stakes poker online. Surely, he could have just hired a coach for a fraction of that!<\/p>\n

2. An Unsolved Murder: Akio Kashiwagi ($19 million)<\/h2>\n

Japanese real estate investor and high roller Akio Kashiwagi<\/a> was known for playing baccarat at $100,000 a hand for more than 24 hours straight. He would play high stakes games for marathon sessions, sleep and return right back to the action. But in 1992, he was found brutally murdered in his home near Mount Fuji, stabbed over 150 times.<\/p>\n

At the time of his death, he was said to owe a variety of casinos, including the Las Vegas Hilton to the tune of $5 million and Trump Plaza Hotel $4 million. With an estimated total loss of $19 million, the mystery surrounding his death is still unsolved with no one found or punished for the murder.<\/p>\n

3. Stick to Playing in Person: Gus Hansen ($21.7 million)<\/h2>\n

Gus Hansen<\/a> is an intriguing figure because he’s a well-known professional poker player. He has won millions playing at live tournaments and also works as a brand ambassador for poker sites and other brands.<\/p>\n

But it seems his wild play style doesn’t serve him as well when he plays online compared to offline. He has accrued $21.7 million in online poker losses at Full Tilt. While he says he’s still okay financially, he does admit that he can’t continue to lose at this pace. Perhaps he should just stick to playing in person!<\/p>\n

4. Laugh It Off: Kerry Packer ($30 million)<\/h2>\n
\"Kerry
Image Credit: linkedin.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In 2000, Kerry Packer was Australia’s richest man, and one of the world’s highest rollers. He went on rather famous gambling sprees<\/a>, losing massive sums of cash. One story tells that he would place enormous wagers on the roulette wheels of London’s Crockford’s casino, only to lose on all of them. He also went on blackjack sprees, winning and losing tens of millions of dollars in the space of a couple days.<\/p>\n

While his losses were incredible, his net worth was even more immense. Despite losing approximately $30 million in 2000 alone (the only time the reports were corroborated by dealers or casino goers), it was barely even noticeable for his overall assets. Business analysts compared it to the equivalent of a man with $3,000 losing $14<\/a>.<\/p>\n

5. Face an Unofficial Suspension: Michael Jordan ($?? million)<\/h2>\n
\"Michael
Image Credit: thesource.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It seems there were a few basketball players in the 90s who got caught up in gambling. A perennial all-star and member of the Dream Team, Charles Barkley was a famous basketball player who has continued to work as a TV analyst. However, he has also confessed to rampant gambling sprees<\/a>, including losing $2.5 million in six hours of playing blackjack. He quit gambling for two years, but is back to it now, although with more moderation.<\/p>\n

Michael Jordan was also a notorious gambler, and it’s even rumored that his first retirement was actually a secret suspension from the NBA<\/a>. He was the face of basketball and the league didn’t want to tarnish his image, but he needed to stay away from the sport for a while to serve a suspension due to gambling investigations. That’s why he spent that embarrassing period playing minor league baseball. Or so the rumor goes.<\/p>\n