Bobby Riggs was a degen who owed ton of money to mob, threw match vs King

This was waaaay before my time but fascinating story. (rather long but worth the read)

http://espn.go.com/espn/feature/stor...he-match-maker

Cliffs -

-Riggs was a complete degenerate gambler who bet on anything and everything, had many mob ties

-He owed the mob over 100k at the time (1.7m today) and set up 2 matches vs women to clear the debt.

-First one to set up the odds for second one vs King, where he got the big score.

-Pretty much everything from day 1 was an act, never believed a word of what he was saying leading up to match.

Of course King says "no way! I beat him fair and square!" but many other people say otherwise. It goes into just how good he was at tennis, and how he could have beaten her easily just like he did the other chick he played (I never knew there was a first match against a woman) even at 55 years old.

this is relevant to my interests. i saw him play some exhibition back in the late 70s / early 80s.

I saw the piece on espn, and nothing was more obvious then him throwing the match. Great piece must see for everyone. BJk actually believed all these years that she won fair and square and had no clue about any of it. Its laughable that anyone who watches it would think theres even a chance he didnt throw it.

In all fairness, if MMA has taught me anything, its that stone cold delusion is the strongest tool in any athletes arsenal.

Kuhle also vehemently disputed the suggestion that Riggs owed mob-linked bookmakers any money, at any time. "You can say the mob killed John Kennedy," he says. "We could rationalize that one, but Bobby never owed anybody a dime -- football bets, basketball bets or anything like that. ... There are no mob people involved with this match. The mob doesn't even play tennis. … I think that's a funny story."


ok but seriously thats high comedy.

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Originally Posted by ShadyJ

I saw the piece on espn, and nothing was more obvious then him throwing the match. Great piece must see for everyone. BJk actually believed all these years that she won fair and square and had no clue about any of it. Its laughable that anyone who watches it would think theres even a chance he didnt throw it.

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Don't they usually put the video up on the website? I can't find it anywhere.

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Originally Posted by ShadyJ

I saw the piece on espn, and nothing was more obvious then him throwing the match. Great piece must see for everyone. BJk actually believed all these years that she won fair and square and had no clue about any of it. Its laughable that anyone who watches it would think theres even a chance he didnt throw it.

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I saw this by chance this AM, too. It was an uncomfortable interview.
Like Mark McGuire's interview where he did take steroids, but they didn't help him hit any HR's.
Its like, "I can't tell if you are lying, or you somehow pulled a George Costanza and now actually believe what you are saying", but, either way you look pathetic.
Just the few clips they showed sure looked like he was throwing, especially after wiping the floor w/the 1st women.

He was a huge prop better, he would have fit right in the poker world.

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Originally Posted by NaturalBornHustler

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Originally Posted by ShadyJ

I saw the piece on espn, and nothing was more obvious then him throwing the match. Great piece must see for everyone. BJk actually believed all these years that she won fair and square and had no clue about any of it. Its laughable that anyone who watches it would think theres even a chance he didnt throw it.

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Don't they usually put the video up on the website? I can't find it anywhere.

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IT'S there on the main pagee video screen, called OTL: King-Riggs (Willing to Bet on It?). Third option on my screen, might be diffrrnt on yours. Use Google.

LOL @ BJK saying Bobby didn't know mobsters etc...

Def a fix, I have swung a racket maybe 10 times in my life and I could hit balls better than Riggs did that day

I remember watching a replay of this match in the late 70's/early 80's after hearing about the controversy & thinking there was no way this was on the up & up. I thought it was a publicity stunt by women's tennis to get equality on the tour & not perpetrated by Bobby Riggs. Whoever was responsible, Riggs or the WTA, it was a farce & is why I'm against equal prize money for men & women @ tournaments like Wimbledon. The women are not the main attraction @ these grand slam events. I'm not sure what the proper % breakdown should be but it's not equal prize money.

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Originally Posted by sonatine

Kuhle also vehemently disputed the suggestion that Riggs owed mob-linked bookmakers any money, at any time. "You can say the mob killed John Kennedy," he says. "We could rationalize that one, but Bobby never owed anybody a dime -- football bets, basketball bets or anything like that. ... There are no mob people involved with this match. The mob doesn't even play tennis. … I think that's a funny story."

ok but seriously thats high comedy.

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I have no problem believing that Riggs was a degenerate gambler who owed bookies the current equivalent of a million bucks.

But how did throwing that tennis match make him even? What kind of bookie is going to accept a massive bet on an exhibition tennis match?

When the Williams sisters were 16 and 17, and just breaking into the top 10 of Womens tennis, they played at the Australian Open. On an off day, they challenged any man ranked below 200th to play one set vs each sister. A guy ranked a bit lower than 200 proceeded to crush both of them. The story I heard is that the guy put out a cigarette shortly before the match started and was just a few months from the end of his career. Guys can hit the ball WAY harder than any woman.

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Originally Posted by DirtyB

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Originally Posted by sonatine

Kuhle also vehemently disputed the suggestion that Riggs owed mob-linked bookmakers any money, at any time. "You can say the mob killed John Kennedy," he says. "We could rationalize that one, but Bobby never owed anybody a dime -- football bets, basketball bets or anything like that. ... There are no mob people involved with this match. The mob doesn't even play tennis. … I think that's a funny story."

ok but seriously thats high comedy.

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I have no problem believing that Riggs was a degenerate gambler who owed bookies the current equivalent of a million bucks.

But how did throwing that tennis match make him even? What kind of bookie is going to accept a massive bet on an exhibition tennis match?

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After the beating he gave the #1 ranked female player in the world he was a 2-1 favorite vs Billie Jean King.

One would have to think that they knew all of the action they took on this was going to come in on Riggs. I know if I was a bookie I would assume most of my bettors were going to lay the 2-1 and some for very heavy amounts and some of these mob guys controlled books in many cities and also in casinos.

So if people betting were betting Riggs through them then they stand to make a lot of money provided at least half of the action they took on riggs did not come in on king. Also I am sure they found may outfits to take their action too and they probably just sprayed as many books as they could for as much as they could and casinos with BJK action

And he didn't just give that #1 ranked female player a beating. He destroyed her like 6-1 and 6-2. If I saw him dismantle the #1 ranked player in the world that bad I would have been licking my chops to get down some big action on riggs vs BJK

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Originally Posted by DirtyB

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Originally Posted by sonatine

Kuhle also vehemently disputed the suggestion that Riggs owed mob-linked bookmakers any money, at any time. "You can say the mob killed John Kennedy," he says. "We could rationalize that one, but Bobby never owed anybody a dime -- football bets, basketball bets or anything like that. ... There are no mob people involved with this match. The mob doesn't even play tennis. … I think that's a funny story."

ok but seriously thats high comedy.

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But how did throwing that tennis match make him even? What kind of bookie is going to accept a massive bet on an exhibition tennis match?

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Before I was betting online my home book would take action on anything as long is he could find a line or two. He booked xfl action, in some cases he let guys bet wrestling matches (for small amounts) where the outcomes were pre-determined, the hot dog eating contests and he even took action on some high school football games.

He offered to book some backyard wiffle ball games if I set the odds and he took action on some underground fights we used to have.

A lot of books will take action on just about anything is what I am getting at. And at the time this was a huge publicity match.

So by riggs losing they had a sure winner. They stood to make whatever was bet on riggs as well as whatever they could bet on BJK.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kujtZlKLL7Y

Read the Bobby Riggs chapter in Jon Bradshaw's book Fast Company, gives you an idea of what went on in the lead-up to his first match that he won (it's basically a first hand account of his long hustle)

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Originally Posted by DirtyB

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Originally Posted by sonatine

Kuhle also vehemently disputed the suggestion that Riggs owed mob-linked bookmakers any money, at any time. "You can say the mob killed John Kennedy," he says. "We could rationalize that one, but Bobby never owed anybody a dime -- football bets, basketball bets or anything like that. ... There are no mob people involved with this match. The mob doesn't even play tennis. … I think that's a funny story."

ok but seriously thats high comedy.

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I have no problem believing that Riggs was a degenerate gambler who owed bookies the current equivalent of a million bucks.

But how did throwing that tennis match make him even? What kind of bookie is going to accept a massive bet on an exhibition tennis match?

When the Williams sisters were 16 and 17, and just breaking into the top 10 of Womens tennis, they played at the Australian Open. On an off day, they challenged any man ranked below 200th to play one set vs each sister. A guy ranked a bit lower than 200 proceeded to crush both of them. The story I heard is that the guy put out a cigarette shortly before the match started and was just a few months from the end of his career. Guys can hit the ball WAY harder than any woman.

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"Mr. Ragano was emphatic," Shaw recalls. "Riggs had assured him that the fix would be in -- he would beat Margaret Court and then he would go in the tank" against King, but Riggs pledged he'd "make it appear that it was on the up and up."

At first, Trafficante and Marcello expressed skepticism, Shaw says. They wondered whether Riggs was in playing shape to defeat Court or King, but Ragano, now deceased, assured them Riggs was training. The men also wondered whether there would be enough interest in exhibition tennis matches to generate substantial betting action. In the early 1970s, as it does today, tennis attracted a tiny fraction of sports betting dollars. Ragano assured them that there was ample time for Riggs to get the media to promote the matches so enough people would be interested to place bets with the mobsters' network of illegal bookmakers.

Finally, Shaw says, the men asked about Riggs' price for the fix. "Ragano says, 'Well, he's going to [get] peanuts compared to what we're going to make out of this, so he has asked for his debt to be erased.'" Riggs "has also asked for a certain amount of money to be discussed later to be put in a bank account for him in England," Ragano told the men, according to Shaw.

After nearly an hour, the four men stood up, shook hands and agreed they'd move forward with Riggs' proposal, Shaw says.

THE ASSUMPTION BY some was that Riggs would not have been able to resist the odds on Billie Jean King, who was listed as high as 5-2 in the Las Vegas sports books. Tennis legend Don Budge, who died in 2000, had told one of his sons he had no doubt Riggs threw the match for money. "In no uncertain terms, he definitely heard from people that Riggs had thrown it," says Budge's son, Jeffrey. "And it was huge money -- more than $100,000, perhaps $200,000 to $500,000. Dad said, '[Riggs] could have run her off the court any day of the week as he did against Margaret Court.'"

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You have to realize the era we were in back then, the mob controlled EVERYTHING. This match was a huge deal back then, and you can be sure that they raked in a shit ton of money off the bets that were made on the match, because they controlled a large portion of gambling in the entire country. They knew that after Riggs destroyed Court in the first match the public would give BJK no chance and the odds would reflect that and money would pour in on Riggs and they would clean up.

It actually is pretty fucking ingenious that Riggs came up with this plan, but if you read the story this guy was just a straight up hustler who would con anyone and everyone if he had the chance. Complete fucking degenerate who made Pete Rose look like a saint in retrospect, who knew BIG time mobsters from Chicago at the very top of the food chain. Even at the time there were some overseas books that refused to take big action because they knew something was up before the match. I mean it was so fucking obvious with his history and all the stories of him sandbagging matches, betting on himself and all types of other crazy shit.

I have to run but I can't wait to watch that video later.

" ftpjesus: Were you watching on Uetro-vision cause Tine unless Im wrong you aint fucking old enough to remember the late 70s dude fuck I barely rememberthem other then Star Wars was the 1st movie I ever saw. "

first off, negging people isnt the same as responding to a post. like seriously.

second off, im "fucking old enough", and i remember watching my dads bootleg beta tape of star wars, and the first porno i ever watched was Debbie Does Dallas and thats whats real on the battlefield.

I bet they were giving close to even money odds on him and people were putting their life savings on it. He owed 100k and im sure the mob worldwide made 10s of millions off of it.

I wanted them to ask the. guy who heard the mob meeting how much he bet on BJK. If he had some type of proof that he put a ton of money on her then there would be no question he was telling the truth. Of course he is because he gains nothing from telling the story except maybe some fear of a reprisal.