Richest Gambler

1. Richest Gambler In The World
2. Richest Gambler In India
3. Richest Gamblers Of All Time
4. Who Is The Richest Gambler
5. Richest Gamblers In Kenya

Recommended For You

It’s somebody you have never heard of. Actually it’s a bunch of people you’ve never heard of. But they’re all rich. Like, make $100k a day rich I’m going to tell you a little story. Currently, it’s widely believed that Bill Benter is the richest gambler in the world. A maths professor, Benter started using his understanding of maths for gambling purposes. After spending years in training, Benter started visiting Las Vegas casinos playing blackjack using card counting. Popularly known as the Tiger Woods of Poker, Phil Ivey has amassed his wealth playing Poker tournaments at land and online casinos. He has won ten Poker World Championships and people estimate his net worth to be around $100 million at least.

Support the independent voice of Denver and help keep the future of Westword free.

Colorado is losing billionaires. And most of the remaining members of this very exclusive club are leaking net worth during the global downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Five Colorado residents made the 2020 Forbes 400, released last month, which tracks the richest Americans; all of them are billionaires. In 2017, Colorado boasted ten billionaires; this year, according to a real-time update from Forbes, that number is down to eight, with all but one of the survivors ranked lower among the world's 2,000-plus billionaires than they were three years ago. The majority are also worth less money overall, and one entry is down by more than two-thirds, suffering a loss in net worth of nearly $4 billion in just the last month.

The two Coloradans who didn't make Forbes's cut this year are Cargill MacMillan III and William MacMillan, who tied for ninth on the 2017 roster and 1,678th on the magazine's billionaires rundown that year; each was reported to have assets valued at $1.24 billion. Three years ago, they were two of fourteen related billionaires who owned control of Cargill, Inc., which Forbes described as 'the largest private company in America.' Today, the majority of the fourteen remain billionaires, but Cargill and William MacMillan have both been downgraded.

Related Stories

There's a lot of that going around. Of the three Colorado billionaires who fell outside the Forbes 400, just one has a net worth greater than in 2017 — and all but one of the top five have seen their value dip over the past three years. That includes Colorado's former number one, whose net worth reportedly plummeted from more than $18 billion to around $9 billion as of early September. And right now, those assets are down to just over $5 billion.

Continue to see who landed where, supplemented by the amount of moolah the five richest Coloradans have earned or lost in the past month.

Number 8: GARY MAGNESS
Denver
Age: 66
2020 net worth: $1.1 billion
2017 net worth: $1.4 billion
2020 billionaires list ranking: 1851
2017 billionaires list ranking: 1468
2017 Colorado billionaires list ranking: 6

Bob Magness, Gary's dad, started TCI, a cable company that merged with AT&T a couple of decades back in a deal valued at around $50 billion. Gary has lived a public life, taking part in off-road truck racing and working with his wife, Sarah Siegel-Magness, as a movie producer. Their best-known film was 2009's Precious. In its report, Forbes highlights Magness's philanthropic acts (among them the Precious Center for Teen Leadership) and notes properties such as Colorado cattle ranches.

Richest Gambler In The World

Number 7: THOMAS BAILEY
Aspen
Age: 83
2020 net worth: $1.2 billion
2017 net worth: $1.1 billion
2020 billionaires list ranking: 1730
2017 billionaires list ranking: 1795
2017 Colorado billionaires list ranking: 10

Forbes points out that Thomas Bailey built his fortune by way of Janus, a mutual fund that he founded in Denver in 1969. The business was at its most profitable during the 1980s and 1990s, only to suffer a slide after the turn of the century. Bailey resigned as CEO of Janus in 2002 and sold his share in the business two years later for a reported $1.2 billion — and judging from his current worth, he's still got most of that nest egg. His current passions include horse breeding and fly fishing.

Number 6: KENNETH TUCHMAN
Denver
Age: 60
2020 net worth: $1.3 billion
2017 net worth: $1.3 billion
2020 billionaires list ranking: 1613
2017 billionaires list ranking: 1567
2017 Colorado billionaires list ranking: 7

Tuchman's wealth is based on his gigs as chairman and CEO of TeleTech, dubbed by Forbes as a 'call center outsourcing giant.' Here's part of his company bio:

Kenneth D. Tuchman sees the world from the customer’s perspective. In 1982, fed up with the way businesses were operating customer care as a burden and a cost center, he founded TeleTech to transform the way companies deliver the customer experience.

With his innate understanding of the power of data and technology to connect customers directly with brands, Tuchman saw the customer experience revolution on the horizon and built a company to lead it. His perspective on the importance of the customer as a strategic asset fuels TeleTech's culture of technology innovation and operational excellence. With a holistic approach that integrates strategy, process, technology, and execution capabilities, TeleTech helps its Global 1000 clients turn the complexities of customer care into a seamless competitive advantage that delivers customer loyalty and long-term sustainable economic growth.

Number 5: PAT STRYKER
Fort Collins
Age: 63
2020 net worth: $2 billion
Net worth as of 9/10/20: $3 billion
2017 net worth: $2.9 billion
2020 billionaires list ranking: 1063
2017 billionaires list ranking: 717
2017 Colorado billionaires list ranking: 5

The size of Stryker's bank account is explained by the success of the Stryker Corporation, founded by her grandfather, a surgeon and inventor of medical devices. A Fort Collins resident, she's known for venture capital, real-estate development and philanthropy. In 2016, we detailed one of her gifts in the post 'Colorado Billionaire Pat Stryker's Key Gift to National Lynching Memorial, Museum.'

Number 4: JAMES LEPRINO
Indian Hills
Age: 82
2020 net worth: $3.2 billion
Net worth as of 9/10/20: $3 billion
2017 net worth: $3 billion
2020 billionaires list ranking: 616
2017 billionaires list ranking: 660
2017 Colorado billionaires list ranking: 4

Forbes write: 'James Leprino owns the world's largest mozzarella cheese maker, with $3.5 billion in estimated annual sales. His Leprino Foods is the exclusive supplier of cheese to Domino's, Papa John's and Pizza Hut. After graduating high school in 1956, he started working with his father full-time at his market. In 1958, after larger chain grocery stores had forced the Leprino market to close, the Leprino Foods cheese empire started with $615. Today, Leprino Foods has more than 50 patents. Those innovations are essentially how Leprino created the 'pizza cheese' that Americans eat today.'

Number 3: CHARLES ERGEN
Denver
Age: 67
2020 net worth: $5.4 billion
Net worth as of 9/10/20: $9.3 billion
2017 net worth: $18.4 billion
2020 billionaires list ranking: 304
2017 billionaires list ranking: 47
2017 Colorado billionaires list ranking: 1

Back in 1980, Forbes reports, Ergen was selling satellite dishes from the back of a truck to customers in the Denver metro area; he also worked as a professional gambler while in college before being ejected from a Las Vegas casino for card-counting. From these humble beginnings sprang DISH Network, which made Ergen the wealthiest person in Colorado in 2017. Not anymore.

Number 2: JOHN MALONE
Elizabeth
Age: 79
2020 net worth: $5.8 billion
Net worth as of 9/10/20: $6.6 billion
2017 net worth: $7.6 billion
2020 billionaires list ranking: 274
2017 billionaires list ranking: 174
2017 Colorado billionaires list ranking: 3

Malone's nickname, the Cable Cowboy, sprang from his success with the cable TV firm TCI, where he served as the right-hand man to the aforementioned Bob Magness. He became CEO of the outfit at age 29, then sold it to AT&T in 1999 for approximately $50 billion. His Liberty Media owns the Atlanta Braves and the auto-racing league Formula 1.

Number 1: PHILIP ANSCHUTZ
Denver
Age: 80
2020 net worth: $11 billion
Net worth as of 9/10/20: $10.1 billion
2017 net worth: $12.7 billion
2020 billionaires list ranking: 118
2017 billionaires list ranking: 96
Colorado billionaires list ranking: 2

Anschutz is an enigma. Starting with the assets from his father's oil business, he's built an empire that includes railroads, real estate and very public businesses such as entertainment, sports and media, including the Colorado Springs Gazette newspaper and the new Denver Gazette . But personally, Anschutz steers clear of the press. Like most of the people on this list, he'd rather count his money than talk about it.

Keep Westword Free... Since we started Westword, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of Denver, and we would like to keep it that way. Offering our readers free access to incisive coverage of local news, food and culture. Producing stories on everything from political scandals to the hottest new bands, with gutsy reporting, stylish writing, and staffers who've won everything from the Society of Professional Journalists' Sigma Delta Chi feature-writing award to the Casey Medal for Meritorious Journalism. But with local journalism's existence under siege and advertising revenue setbacks having a larger impact, it is important now more than ever for us to rally support behind funding our local journalism. You can help by participating in our 'I Support' membership program, allowing us to keep covering Denver with no paywalls.

Trending News

William “Bill” Benter developed one of the most successful
computer software programs in the world that helped him overcome
the Hong Kong horse racing market, but he certainly didn’t stop
there. He has moved into the United States and other Asian
countries, reportedly bringing home over $10 billion dollars a
year, making him one of the first professional gambling
billionaires.

Not only is Benter a mathematical genius who came up with an
extraordinary piece of gambling software, but he also is a
thoughtful philanthropist who dedicates a lot of his time and
finances to support government affairs, education related
causes, and many other organizations as well.

Insight into His Past

William Benter was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and
that’s where he spent the majority of his childhood. Even in
grade school, it became evident that Benter had exceptional
mathematic skills as he would often work out different equations
in his head just for fun.

Richest Gambler In India

As Benter grew up, he desired to use his mathematical talents
to make a living but he didn’t want to have to devote his life
to teaching or any other regular 9 to 5 job, so he headed to the
nearby casinos and began using his skills to count cards. It was
around this time that Benter came across the book, Beat the
Dealer, by Edward O. Thorp, which helped him improve his
methods.

Benter was embarking on a long journey to becoming a
professional gambler, but unfortunately Benter was such a
talented card-counter that many casinos banned, as they knew he
was bound to win consistently. Discouraged and realizing
gambling was his calling, Benter went back to the drawing board
to see if he could figure out another way to use his
mathematical knowledge to triumph in the world of gambling and
that’s just what he did.

Professional Gambling: Software that Beats the System

Benter was a too well-known face in casinos, so he decided to
take on a form of gambling that allowed him to stay away from
them, leaving him with no choice but to start gambling on
horseracing. Through hours of working on perfecting his work,
Benter was able to develop a software program that assessed
sixteen individual variables that could affect the horses,
jockeys, and trainers of a race that could ultimately have an
impact its outcome.

Using these results, Benter and his team created their own
prices and probabilities, which they used to make bets that were
usually always accurate. Benter is always looking for ways to
improve his software, adding more variables to improve his bets.
His latest updated software analyzes over 130 different
variables and it takes a deeper look into the prices of
different bets to see where he has the most potential to make
the most money.

Benter has hired a team of professionals to place bets for
him, strategically having them place bets mere seconds before
the last bets can be accepted. On average, he brings home $5-$10
million in a single day at the racetrack. His success started on
the racetracks of Hong Kong, and that’s where he met his future
wife, Vivian.

Richest Gamblers Of All Time

More recently, the couple has moved overseas to the United
States and other Asian countries that allow horseracing, so
Benter can prove that his software can successful in any
environment. He reportedly wins approximately 24% profit on the
turnover each time he bets, which is an impressive figure for
any gambler.

Philanthropy

In order to faithfully support United State’s leaders and
organizations, Benter formed the Benter Foundation with his
wife, so they can focus on helping organizations and people
worldwide. They look for organizations that are committed to
advancing education, human services, global citizenship, and a
myriad of other acts of service.

The Benters also pour a lot of their money into politics, as
they are very proud and passionate democrats. In 2007 and 2008,
they donated more than $136,000 to Democratic candidates,
including $6,900 to Obama. Benter is also member of the shadowy
Democracy Alliance, under which he donates $200,000 to a select
group of liberal nonprofit organizations.

Who Is The Richest Gambler

Despite trying to avoid this career when he was younger,
Benter ironically enjoys being a visiting professor at the
Southampton Management School as part of their Center for Risk
Research. Benter has also been a guest speaker at Harvard
University, Stanford University, Carnegie Mellon University, The
City University of Hong Kong, and many more Universities across
the United States and China.

Richest Gamblers In Kenya

The City University of Hong Kong actually established a
scholarship in his honor, which is awarded to students each year
if they are excelling in applied mathematics. As Benter and his
wife care deeply for Hong Kong, they joined a Rotary Club that
focuses on establishing peace among China and its neighboring
countries. They also developed the Benter Initiative to help
students at the Chatham University develop a greater awareness
of world issues as they relate to different cultures.