Top 5 Richest Gamblers in The World

Let’s be honest, we’ve probably all tried it at some point: a game of poker, blackjack, baccarat, or a shot at one of the many slot machines. Of course, everyone dreams of winning a good jackpot. ‘Imagine winning the jackpot, that would be cool!’ are thoughts and conversations that many people have before they start playing a casino game.

For some people, this dream became a reality. In fact, some people have become so rich through gambling that they probably wouldn’t have to work for the rest of their lives. This includes amounts of millions.

In this blog, we are going to talk about the top 5 richest gamblers in the world. We’ll look at who they are, how much they earn, and how they have become so successful in gambling.

Bill Benter

Bill Benter, born in 1957 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is one of the biggest names in the gambling world. It is also fair to say that he is considered a true genius in mathematics. He had a degree in physics and an incredible talent for counting cards. With this ability, he decided to use it in the casinos in Las Vegas. In which he specialized himself in the famous game Blackjack and the ways in which he could beat the dealer. Under the guidance of Edward Thorp’s Beat The Dealer, he continuously improved his techniques.

Bill Benter kept practicing and became more and more efficient in the game and the ways he could beat the dealer. And he succeeded! He won so often that many casinos in Las Vegas banned him.

After this, he moved to Hong Kong where he met Alan Woods. Together they worked on a formula that made it possible for gamblers to make predictions on horse races. In this way, they created the world’s first software-assisted gambling operation, which is still incredibly popular today.

Bill Benter is estimated to earn around $100 million a year.

Zeljko Ranogajec

Zeljko Ranogajec, born in 1961 in Australia, grew up in a family of Croatian immigrants. He went to university, but soon abandoned his studies because he felt more attracted to gambling and wanted to earn his money with it. Zeljko has a smart personality. He is very knowledgeable about mathematics and has a very good photographic memory. He used these characteristics when playing blackjack in casinos, the game he specialized in.

Soon he started to make large amounts of money, after which he was banned from many casinos, just like Bill Benter. This challenged him to look into other game formats, and in this way, he ended up in games such as Keno and horse racing. Here he became just as successful.

It is not possible to say with 100% certainty how much money Ranogajec earns in total, as he did not give many interviews and stayed out of the picture a lot. However, it is estimated that Ranogajec has a net worth of about $600 million.

Phil Ivey

Phil Ivey was born in 1977 in New Jersey, California. He is known for being the youngest player ever to win ten World Series of Poker Bracelets. And that’s no surprise, as Phil Ivey started playing poker at the age of 8. In fact, he liked poker so much at a younger age that he created a fake ID to enter casinos at the time. By the time he was 20, he was already making a lot of money and making his big break into the gambling world. Phil Ivey also has a lot of experience in online casino tournaments.

With an estimated net worth of $100 million, Phil Ivey is rightfully in this list of the top 5 richest gamblers in the world.

Edward Thorp

Edward Thorp was born in 1932 in Chicago, Illinois. He shall be known as an extremely intelligent man who has done many different things to become successful in the gambling world.

Edward Thorp has a PhD degree in mathematics, which enabled him to figure out how to calculate card counting in blackjack and baccarat, by using formulas and strategies. He was also a professor of mathematics and the first to develop strategies for card games using a computer machine.

With all this knowledge he went into the casinos and achieved many good results. He also wrote a book on card counting that is still considered today as the ultimate guide to properly apply and understand this strategy in blackjack.

Thorp has since been active in the financial markets and is estimated to have made a fortune of $800 million.

Billy Walters

And the last name on the list of the top 5 richest gamblers in the world is… Billy Walters!

Billy Walters was born in 1946 in Munfordville, Kentucky. He is best known for his success in sports betting. Billy Walters was introduced to gambling from an early age. His father was a famous poker player and his uncle a popular gambler. The result of this was that Billy Walters started gambling at the age of 9. In his later years, he continued to do so and made a lot of money.

It is estimated that Billy Walters’ net worth is about $200 million.