 Charles
Barkley at the Poker
Table After Pledging
to Stop Gambling
Charles Barkley to
stop gambling?
That would be like
Hillary Clinton
dropping out of
politics.
He's back....only a
few days after his
pledge and he'll be
appearing at a poker
table July 2.
It's for a good
cause though.
He'll be playing in
a World Series of
Poker celebrity
event for charity
and all the money he
wins will be donated
to charity.
Wynn Las Vegas and
the Clark County
prosecutor's office
had to chase Barkley
for a $400,000
gambling debt,
according to reports
that surfaced this
month. Barkley
repaid the casino
and a $40,000 fee to
the DA's office.
Barkley is on the
roster of
celebrities to play
in a tournament
called Ante Up for
Africa, the day
before the World
Series of Poker Main
Event starts in Las
Vegas at the Rio
casino. The
organizers are actor
Don Cheadle and
poker professional
Annie Duke and last
year, the event
raised more than
$700,000 for relief
efforts in Darfur, a
part of Sudan where
overwhelming human
misery is the result
of conflict and
famine.
Annie Duke, it
should be mentioned,
is a spokesperson
for online poker
site
UltimateBet.com
Barkley is known for
his compulsive
gambling. In an
interview with
ESPN's Trey Wingo,
he revealed that he
lost approximately
$10 million through
gambling.[48] In
addition, he also
admitted to losing
$2.5 million "in a
six hour period"
while playing
blackjack. Although
Barkley openly
admits to his
problem, he claims
it is not serious
since he can afford
to support the
habit.[48] When
approached by fellow
TNT analyst Ernie
Johnson about the
issue, Barkley
replied, "It's not a
problem. If you're a
drug addict or an
alcoholic, those are
problems. I gamble
for too much money.
As long as I can
continue to do it I
don't think it's a
problem. Do I think
it's a bad habit?
Yes, I think it's a
bad habit. Am I
going to continue to
do it? Yes, I'm
going to continue to
do it."
Despite suffering
big losses, Barkley
also claims to have
won on several
occasions. During a
trip to Las Vegas,
he claims to have
won $700,000 from
playing blackjack
and betting on the
Indianapolis Colts
to defeat the
Chicago Bears in
Super Bowl XLI.
-----
Tyrone Black,
Gambling911.com
Originally published
June 23, 2008 12:11
am EST
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