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How the mighty have fallen!
A bookmaker who operated a prestigious Las Vegas sportsbook and lost his job for letting Charles Barkley make an unauthorized Super Bowl wager has resurfaced as a tout!
The year was 2002, and the favored St. Louis Rams were set to face the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XXXVI.
Charles Barkley, retired NBA legend and legendary high-stakes gambler, was in the sportsbook at the Mandalay Bay casino in Vegas and wanted to put a bet on the Patriots.
A large bet, to the tune of around half a million dollars, on the Patriots on the moneyline.
Nick Bogdanovich, sportsbook director at Mandalay Bay and obviously star-struck in the presence of a mega-celebrity, accepted the wager on credit, meaning Barkley neither had to put up the cash in advance nor sign a marker to make the bet.
That's a big no-no in the legal sportsbook biz, and to make matter worse, Barkley's bet won, as the underdog Patriots beat the Rams 20-17.
The next day Bogdanovich was fired.
The controversial and humiliating incident was huge news in the gambling world and even made the mainstream media--it was discussed on ESPN's "Pardon the Interuption" and David Letterman on his show asked Barkley about it.
Even the supermarket tabloid Star magazine did an item.
Eight years later, after bouncing around at a variety of jobs, including strip club operator, the beleaguered Bogdanovich is now a tout--a sports handicapper (some call them scamdicappers).
A five-page mailing from Bogdanovich's college and pro football handicapping service came into one of Gambling911.com's offices today and it heartily exclaims: "If you play the games I play, you'll make the money I make, I GUARANTEE IT!"
The mailing goes on to make other outrageous claims, such as "It's hard not to win big" and "I win, that's why you win" and "You win, I guarantee it."
The cost of the service is $125 for four weeks or $299 for the whole season.
The mailing also notes: "Try my trial package: 4 weeks of my personal best plays and a make a GUARANTEED $1,500 in net profit. I guarantee by October 20 you must clear $1,500."
Anyone who knows anything about sports, betting or sports betting knows that there's no such thing as a guarantee--not on who will win a game nor on who will cover the pointspread in a game.
And since there is no such thing as a guaranteed winner, Bogdanovich claiming his picks are guaranteed makes him a Grade A, 100%, full-scale liar.
There's no other way to say it.
Bogdanovich was disgraced when he was canned by Mandalay Bay in 2002.
Eight years later, his disgraceful behavior continues.
By Tom Somach
Gambling911.com Staff Writer
