One of the most prolific sports gamblers Billy Walters has made shocking revelations about the golf superstar Phil Mickelson in his new book “Gambler: Secrets from a Life at Risk” saying that he once tried to place a massive wager on a Ryder Cup in which he was competing.
In the book, Walters talked about his friendship and partnership with Mickelson saying that the latter once approached him to place a bet on his own team to win the 39th Ryder Cup.
“In late September 2012, Phil called me from Medinah Country Club just outside Chicago, site of the 39th Ryder Cup matches between the United States and Europe,” Walters said in his book, according to Golf Digest.
"He was feeling supremely confident that the American squad led by Tiger Woods, Bubba Watson, and Phil himself was about to reclaim the Cup from the Euros. He was so confident that he asked me to place a $400,000 wager for him on the U.S. team to win.”
However, Walters refused Mickelson’s request and advised him to reconsider.
“‘Have you lost your [freaking] mind?’ I told him. ‘Don’t you remember what happened to Pete Rose?’ The former Cincinnati Reds manager was banned from baseball for betting on his own team. ‘You’re seen as a modern-day Arnold Palmer,’ I added. ‘You’d risk all that for this? I want no part of it,'” Walters wrote.
However, Walters does not know if Mickelson get someone to place a bet on his behalf but if he did, he would have lost the wager as the Europeans bested the Americans, pulling off the biggest comeback in Ryder Cup history.