Phil Mickelson is well known in the sports world as an enthusiastic gambler, but a soon-to-be-published book details just how much money he has wagered over the years and how often.
Billy Walters, a professional sports gambler and entrepreneur who was convicted of insider trading in 2017 and spent five years in prison, will have his autobiography “Gambler: Secrets from a Life at Risk” published Aug. 23 by Simon & Schuster. A portion of the book was excerpted by Golf Digest on Thursday, and focused on Walters’ gambling relationship with Mickelson, the six-time PGA Tour major champion and World Golf Hall of Famer.
“Phil liked to gamble as much as anyone I’ve ever met,” Walters writes. “… Based on our relationship and what I’ve since learned from others, Phil’s gambling losses approached not $40 million as has been previously reported, but much closer to $100 million. In all, he wagered a total of more than $1 billion during the past three decades.
“The only other person I know who surpassed that kind of volume is me.”
Walters said he first met Mickelson in 2006, when they were paired together at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Walters said Mickelson “knew of my sports-gambling success and was trying to connect on that level.”
The two eventually became gambling partners, Walters said, with the two combining their bets and splitting the winnings. Because Walters was well-known as a prolific gambler, sports books would not take large bets from him, so he used Mickelson as a “beard.”
Walters provided some astounding details into Mickelson’s gambling habits from 2010-14, citing betting records and “two reliable sources.” Walters writes that Mickelson made thousands of wagers for $110,000 (to win $100,000 each) and $220,000 (to win $200,000 each), with the total amount bet reaching more than $300 million.
In 2011, Walters said, Mickelson averaged nine bets per day. He also once lost more than $140,000 in a single day betting on Major League Baseball games.
Perhaps most explosively, Walters said Mickelson approached him about betting $400,000 on the U.S. Team to win the 2012 Ryder Cup, which Mickelson was playing in. Walters refused, telling Mickelson he could wind up the next Pete Rose, who has been banned from baseball since 1989 for gambling on games, including those involving his own team.
As it turned out, the U.S. team lost to the Europeans by a single point.
Walters said he estimated Mickelson’s net worth at more than $250 million a decade ago. Mickelson left the PGA Tour for LIV golf in 2022, reportedly receiving a $200 million signing bonus.