Phil Mickelson DENIES betting $400,000 on 2012 Ryder Cup amid explosive claims from former partner Billy Walters: ‘I would never undermine the integrity of the game’
- Walters alleges that Mickelson contacted him to try and place a bet on the Cup
- But Mickelson denies betting on the tournament that Team USA lost at Medinah
- DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news
Phil Mickelson has claimed that he did not place any wagers on the 2012 Ryder Cup in the aftermath of a book published by noted sports gambler Billy Walters.
In that book, Walters alleges that he and Mickelson discussed betting on the tournament held at Medinah – something that Mickelson denied in a statement to Sports Illustrated.
‘I never bet on the Ryder Cup,’ Mickelson said. ‘While it is well known that I always enjoy a friendly wager on the course, I would never undermine the integrity of the game. I have also been very open about my gambling addiction.
‘I have previously conveyed my remorse, took responsibility, have gotten help, have been fully committed to therapy that has positively impacted me, and I feel good about where I am now.’
Mickelson is currently competing at LIV Golf’s event in Bedminster, New Jersey and he declined to speak to reporters.
Phil Mickelson has denied placing a bet on the 2012 Ryder Cup in a statement to SI
Mickelson’s former gambling partner Billy Walters (pictured) has opened up on their relationship in his autobiography – alleging the golfer bet $400,000 on the Ryder Cup
The six-time major champion, pictured with wife Amy, is said to have made 858 bets of $220,000 and 1,115 bets of $110,000 from 2010 up until 2014
Walters, one of the most successful American sports gamblers in history, opened up on his relationship with the golf legend in his autobiography ‘Gambler: Secrets from a Life at Risk’, via Golf Digest.
Citing betting records and two ‘very reliable’ sources, the Las Vegas businessman claims that Mickelson made 858 bets of $220,000 and 1,115 bets of $110,000 from 2010 up until 2014, while estimating that his total losses in the last 30 years exceed the $1bn mark.
‘The only other person I know who surpassed that kind of volume is me,’ he said.
Walters also alleges that Mickelson, who has won six major championships throughout a glittering career in golf, even tried to place a $400,000 wager on his own US team to win the Ryder Cup back in 2012.
‘Phil called me from Medinah Country Club just outside Chicago, site of the 39th Ryder Cup matches between the United States and Europe,’ he recalled.
‘He was feeling supremely confident that the American squad led by Tiger Woods, Bubba Watson, and Phil himself was about to reclaim the Cup from the Euros. He was so confident that he asked me to place a $400,000 wager for him on the U.S. team to win.
‘I could not believe what I was hearing.’
Walters, who was sentenced to five years in prison for insider trading in 2017, says he then furiously asked Mickelson: ‘Have you lost your f***ing mind?’ before the California golfer backtracked on his request. He remains unsure if he placed the bet anywhere else.
Walters claims Mickelson, one of the most successful golfers of the modern era, has racked up almost $100m in gambling losses over 30 years
He even alleges that the American wanted to bet $400,000 on his own US team to win the Ryder Cup in 2012
That year, Team USA suffered one of the biggest collapses in Ryder Cup history as Europe completed a miraculous comeback in Medinah.
After first crossing paths in 2006 at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in Northern California, Walters and Mickelson met again two years later in another Pro-Am in Charlotte, where the latter planted the seed for a potential gambling partnership.
The pair subsequently entered that partnership, splitting all winnings 50/50 and putting up an even share of the money to ensure an equal amount of risk and reward over the course of five years.
But Walters added: ‘Phil said he had two offshore accounts that would take big action from him. In all the decades I’ve worked with partners and beards, Phil had accounts as large as anyone I’d seen.
‘You don’t get those types of accounts without betting millions of dollars.’
Walters went on to reveal that Mickelson 3,154 bets in 2011 alone, equating to nine per day.
One one particular day that year, he made 43 bets on major-league baseball games, resulting in $143,500 in losses.
The 53-year-old also made a staggering 7,065 wagers on football, basketball, and baseball.
OTHER SPORTS STARS WHO LOST MILLIONS GAMBLING
John Daly
Arguably the most controversial golfer of all time, Daly lost over $55m between 1991 and 2007 after wagering around $90m.
The American has a number of infamous gambling stories, including dropping $1.65m in the space of five hours in Las Vegas, playing blackjack and slots for two days straight without a break, and dabbling in slots that cost $5,000 a spin.
Charles Barkley
The former NBA star once admitted to losing over $10m in sports betting, dropping $2.5m in a mere six hours at his lowest point.
He has also previously claimed that he lost 10 to 20 different $1m bets in his lifetime.
In 2008, The Wynn casino filed a civil complaint to recoup $400,000 in gambling losses from Barkley, who subsequently went on a betting hiatus.
Floyd Mayweather
Nicknamed ‘Money’, Mayweather has amassed bundles of it over the years, meaning he’s had no problem forking out on some eye-watering bets.
Between 2012 and 2015, the boxing legend posted no less than $2m in three separate winning wagers. Yet he has not always been as successful as he has in the ring.
One of the most infamous losses of Mayweather’s betting career came when he wagered $13m on the Denver Broncos to win Super Bowl XLVIII, only for the Seattle Seahawks to win 43-8.
Walters says he immediately shut Mickelson down, but is unsure if he placed the bet elsewhere
Mickelson’s struggles with sports gambling have been well documented over the years, with court documents from a 2015 money-laundering case showing that almost $3m was transferred from him to an intermediary of ‘an illegal gambling operation.’
And six years later, the Detroit News revealed he had also been linked in court documents to an alleged mob bookie in a 2007 trial.
While he was not charged in either case, Mickelson’s gambling habits have been in the public domain throughout his golf career, in which he has collected $97m in PGA Tour on-course earnings.
He also put pen to paper on a lucrative multi-year contract with Saudi-funded rebel tour LIV Golf, believed to be worth $200m.
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