Whales have long been a part of Norwegian culture.
You could dream of meeting a spy whale in Hammerfest, Norway, captaining a whaling vessel, or you could dream of being a whale (or high roller) in a casino.
If you play high stakes, you better be prepared for potential big losses, too. We’ve asked our guest author, Benjamin Repperson, an expert on norske betting sider, to help us compile a list of the biggest losses in gambling.
A word of warning – some of these amounts will shock you.
Harry Kakavas
Australia falls in the top 10 countries with the highest annual gambling losses. One of the biggest losers in gambling history, Harry Kakavas, made most of his losses in an Australian casino. He was so desperate that he tried to sue Melbourne’s Crown Casino to try and recover some of the money he squandered.
So how much did he gamble? Wait for it…$1,5 billion. Yes – billion. Luckily he only lost $20,500,000, which he has paid in full. We say “only” in a very flippant tone because it doesn’t matter how you look at it – $20,000,000 is a lot of money.
Harry’s game of choice was Baccarat, where he often gambled away $300,000 per hand.
Ouch!
Terrance Watanabe
Gambling history will forever remember the name of Terrance Watanabe.
We think he should take some tips in safe gambling before placing another bet.
Our dear friend Terrance bet an astounding total of $825 million, not quite as much as Harry Kakavas. Terrance, on the other hand, lost a colossal $127,000,000 from his Baccarat and Blackjack bets.
Terrance leaves a legacy in Las Vegas – that no one has ever made the losses he made. No one probably ever will.
He also tried to sue Las Vegas casinos, which was unsuccessful and he was ordered to settle his debt. Towards the end of 2020, he still owed $15,000,000.
What makes this even worse is that he could face significant jail time if he doesn’t pay.
Maureen O’Connor
Losses don’t only happen in land-based casinos. Online gambling has its fair share of losers, too.
One of the biggest online gambling losers is Maureen O’Connor. The former San Diegan mayor bet a total of $1 billion on video poker. After investigation, it was found that she lost $13,000,000.
Fortunately, her entire debt has been paid in full. Hopefully, she learned a lesson too.
Umar Siddiqui
Umar is a true example of how bad gambling addiction can get.
Mr Siddiqui was asked to leave his company, Fry’s Electronics, because he stole $65,000,000 from the company to use as his gambling purse at The Venetian.
Treated like royalty with access to private jets and luxury suites at The Venetian, it all came crumbling down when he amassed $120,000,000 debt and was ordered to pay back the $65,000,000 to Fry’s.
He reportedly only had $80 in his possession, so it’s safe to assume the debt will never be paid.
Conclusion
We had to take a moment and compose ourselves after reading about the losses these people made. It’s simply ridiculous how much money people have squandered with gambling. You, however, already know about safe gambling and know when to quit. And even if you don’t, online casinos have parameters in place to block big bets and huge losses.
