ALL ABOUT THE MONEY

Staring Down a Lockout aDDicteD to Pawn Living the Luxe Life how to Scam an athLete in 10 uneaSy StePS
the 100 beSt-Paying teamS arounD the worLD

From Darts
to sumo

The Top
earners in
30 sporTs

ESPN.COM/INSIDER * MAY 2 2011 * $4.99

0502COVER_LO.indd 1 4/15/11 10:47 PM

 $25K
Per night

0502LIVING_LO.indd 52 4/15/11 5:39 PM

 The

high
LIFE ➸

When deep-pocketed athletes celebrate a Win,

go out on the toWn or relax at season's end, they
splurge at places most mere mortals can’t get
close enough to sniff. have a look for yourselves.

by sam alipour
PHOTOCREDIT GOES HERE

53

0502LIVING_LO.indd 53 4/15/11 5:39 PM

 All About the Money
from
$116K
for 25 hours
Where they bunk
palms
las vegas
in sin city, where opulence is the norm,
there’s a suite so large, lavish and lush
that charlie sheen might even think
twice about sullying it: the hardwood
suite at the palms casino resort, owned
by the sacramento kings’ maloof family.
a basketball court dominates the
10,000-square-foot, two-floor crib,
which comes complete with locker room,
scoreboard and a slew of murphy beds
large enough for nba players like shaq,
ron artest and carmelo anthony, all of
whom have balled there with their crews.
cheerleaders can be requested for an
additional fee—or recruited from one of
the casino’s three clubs and two bars.
➸ ➸ ➸ knicks f caRMelo anThony
54
0502LIVING_LO.indd 54
“It sounds cool to own
PREVIOUS PAGES: COURTESY PALMS CASINO RESORT. THIS PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: COURTESY NETJETS (2); DIMITRIOS KAMBOURIS/WIREIMAGE/GETTY IMAGES; MARC STAMAS/
your own plane, but
GETTY IMAGES; JACK KOPALOFF/FILMMAGIC/GETTY IMAGES; BRIAN TO/FILMMAGIC/GETTY IMAGES; JERRITT CLARK/WIREIMAGE/GETTY IMAGES; JOHNNY NUNEZ/GETTY IMAGES
between employing
crews and paying for jet
fuel, it’s a lot to deal with.
With my Marquis card,
all I do is call a number,
hoW they fly
lay out my itinerary—
netjets sometimes I have to be
in five different states in
athletes looking for the privacy and
convenience of a team plane, minus three days—and go.”
the card-game squabbles, travel via
a company called netJets, whose NASCAR/IndyCar DRIVER
800-plane fleet can ferry them Danica Patrick
anywhere they want to go on as little as
four hours’ notice. the firm, which is
part of famed investor Warren buffett's
vast empire, offers two plans popular
among jocks: the marquis Jet card,
which allows clients to purchase flight
time, and “fractional ownership,” for
big hitters who wish to buy an interest
in a specific aircraft (with 50 hours
getting them 1/16th of the plane).
netJets handles the rest, from
maintenance to pilots to an
“owner-service team” that could put
even a diva like tyra banks at ease. the
most popular planes? the seven-seat
cessna citation xls and the midsize
citation x, with its 24-foot cabin and full
refreshment center.
RECENT TRAVELERS
yankees 1b MaRk TeixeiRa ➸ ➸
tennis champ RogeR FedeReR ➸ ➸ ➸
RecenT lodgeRS
➸ skateboarder Ryan SheckleR
➸ ➸ lakers f Ron aRTeST
4/15/11 5:39 PM
 from

$250
Per person*
*estimated

WheRe they paRty

MYHOUSE
los angeles
in hollywood, today’s hot club is
tomorrow’s taco stand. But the current
go-to spot for the rich, famous
and damn fine—and, by extension,
moneyed athletes—is Myhouse, a
10,000-square-foot expanse designed
by dodd Mitchell (of Roosevelt hotel
fame) to resemble the art-deco
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: COURTESY MY HOUSE (2); MICHAEL KOVAC/GETTY IMAGES; JASON LAVERIS/FILMMAGIC/GETTY IMAGES; VALERIE MACON/GETTY IMAGES; RAY TAMARRA/FILMAGIC/GETTY IMAGES

mansions dotting the hollywood hills.

among the homey spaces available for
Vips to rent are the sunken living room,
with velvet sofas and shag carpet, and
an upstairs bedroom, complete with a
king-size bed. lakers and Clippers often
hold court here, but they’re usually
outnumbered by visiting players.
(evidently the nightlife isn’t as inviting
in sacramento and Oklahoma City.) if
you’re a commoner looking to pierce the
mob outside, don’t bother—unless
you’re ridiculously attractive.

“Every time I go to
LA, I go to MyHouse.
Everyone is just so
happy to be there. And
I’m telling you, it’s like
you’re in a movie. The
ladies are beautiful
and, for some reason,
they’re friendly.”
Patriots CORNERBACK
Leigh Bodden

reCent partyGoers
➸ ClippeRs F Blake Griffin
➸ ➸ Bengals WR terrell owens
➸ ➸ ➸ Real MadRid stRikeR Cristiano ronaldo

55

0502LIVING_LO.indd 55 4/15/11 11:23 PM

 from

$14K Per week

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: COURTESY LA SAMANNA (2); MICHAEL KOVAC/Gq/GETTY IMAGES; SEAN GARDNER/GETTY IMAGES; JON KOPALOFF/FILMAGIC/GETTY IMAGES/JOHN M. HELLER/GETTY IMAGES
Where they vacation

La
Samanna
Resort
St.Martin,
Frenchwest indies
Jocks desiring a true end-of-season
getaway escape to this popular celebrity
haven. lapped by a private beach, the
orient-express property has it all:
world-class spa, elegant dining at
le réservé and the largest private wine
cellar in the region, la cave, which RecenT BeachgoeRS
houses more than 12,000 bottles. nascar driver JeFF goRdon ➸ ➸
and then there are the villas—modest saints lb JonaThan VilMa ➸ ➸ ➸

little 4,600-square-foot digs with ravens rb williS MC gahee ➸ ➸ ➸ ➸

wraparound infinity pools, private

terraces and spectacular ocean views
from atop a 100-foot-high cliff.

“the weather is great, the water is a

beautiful blue. I’m pretty sure there’s sharks,
but it’s so smooth and calm, even I had to
get in. And the locals are great. they want
me to throw a basketball camp down there.
Just another excuse to go!”
76ers FORWARD
ELTON BRAND

56

0502LIVING_LO.indd 56 4/15/11 5:39 PM

 All About the Money

NFL AGENT CONFIDENTIAL

from WHICH FICTIONAL Most agents (80.1%) have a special spot in their hearts for Jerry Maguire.

$200
CHARACTER Their clients, though, don’t necessarily agree with the characterization.
DO YOU MOST “I asked one of my guys to sign ‘You complete me,’ on my wall” says one agent.
IDENTIFY WITH: “He refused and looked like he wanted to throw up.” Another 18.6% see
ARLI$$, ARI GOLD Entourage’s manic man peering back from the mirror. “Not because of the
for two PEOPLE OR JERRY personality but because half the time everyone is mad at me.”
Scan Here for a
MAGUIRE? BonuS QueStion!
➸

(see page 8 for details)

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: COURTESY GARY JAMES (2); ALBERTO E. RODRIGUEZ/GETTY IMAGES; JOE SCARNICI/GETTY IMAGES; ANDREW D. BERNSTEIN/NBAE/GETTY IMAGES; JEFF GENTNER/GETTY IMAGES
Where they dine

prime ONE
twelve
miami
if you’re a local pro, a product of the u or
a visiting player looking for a postgame
meal in south beach, prime one twelve
is the spot to see and be seen. the
elegant but oft-cramped eatery offers
three exclusive spaces for famous folk
who wish to distance themselves from
gawking locals: the patio, where a-rod,
cameron diaz and bill clinton recently “It’s the most
held their tabloid-worthy powwow; the
wine room in the back, a favorite of heat
impressive
president pat riley and his staff; and, in dinner I’ve ever
the adjacent prime hotel, prime
lounge's private room, where lebron
had—maybe the
James, dwyane Wade and chris bosh most expensive,
celebrated after the official welcome
party for the big three at american too. A single
airlines arena. even those in the know meatball was,
plan ahead for a desirable spot (texts to
an employee named matt are rumored to like, $40! but,
help), while latecomers (like a recent man, it was
suns contingent) hit up the main bar's
high-top table. so good.”
Cardinals RECEIVER
Larry
fitzgerald

RecenT dineRS
Wizards pg John wall ➸
bulls f caRloS BooZeR ➸ ➸
cardinals dt calaiS caMpBell ➸ ➸ ➸ ➸

58

0502LIVING_LO.indd 58 4/15/11 5:39 PM

 All AbOUt tHe Money

tHeY COMe FROM AFRICA, Country best-Paid Athlete Sport league, team Annual Per
(or Competition) Salary Capita
ASIA, AUStRAlIA, eUROPe, GDP

NORtH AMeRICA AND central eLoge enza soccer France, Troyes $206,000 $448
SOUtH AMeRICA, RePReSeNtING aFrican
republic
yanissi

18 SPORtS. tHeY ARe tHe ... chad

misdongarde soccer Serbia, FK Metalac
BetoLigar
$21,500 $610

chile mark gonzaLez soccer Russia, CSKA Moscow $9,324,958 $9,623

china yao ming basketball NBA, Houston Rockets $17,700,000 $3,769

best-P Aid
colombia juan paBLo auto racing NASCAR $5,088,410 $5,031
montoya
oose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loosekassim aBdaLLah
comoros
change loose changeFrance,
soccer
loose change change$785
CS Sedan Ardennes $120,000
loose change loose change
cook islands stan wright rugby Magners League, Leinster $204,000 $9,749
costa rica Bryan ruiz soccer Netherlands, FC Twente $1,720,828 $6,395
ivorY coast yaya toure soccer EPL, Manchester City $18,200,000 $1,093

athletes croatia
cuba

Luka modriC
yuniesky
BetanCourt
soccer EPL, Tottenham Hotspur $4,900,000 $14,273
baseball MLB, Milwaukee Brewers $4,300,000 $5,437

FROM 181 curaÇao

cYprus

czech
jair jurrjens baseball MLB, Atlanta Braves
Constandinos soccer
CharaLamBides
petr CeCh soccer

EPL, Chelsea
$3,250,000 $20,295
Cyprus, Apoel F.C. Nicosia $1,589,000 $29,263

$7,400,000 $18,344

COUNTRIES republic

dem. rep. oF
the congo
denmark
herita iLunga

danieL agger
soccer

soccer
EPL, West Ham United

EPL, Liverpool
$2,730,000 $170

$4,500,000 $56,687
Sports represented: soccer 113, basketball 17, baseball 12, auto racing 6, golf 6, American djibouti ismaiL ahmed soccer Slovakia, F.K. $51,500 $1,076
football 5, hockey 5, cricket 4, boxing 3, road running 2, rugby 2, tennis 2, badminton 1, cycling 1, kadar hassan Dunajska Streda

motocross 1, sumo 1, track and field 1, yachting 1. The results: dominican aLfonso baseball MLB, Chicago Cubs $19,000,000 $4,618
republic soriano

ecuador antonio vaLenCia soccer EPL, Manchester United $6,361,983 $4,206

egYpt mohammed zidan soccer Bundesliga, $2,580,000 $2,265
Borussia Dortmund
TECHNICALLY SPEAKING
Country best-Paid Athlete Sport league, team Annual Per mohamed aBu soccer Egypt, Al Ahly $2,580,000
(or Competition) Salary Capita treika
“Annual Salary”
GDP el salvador arturo aLvarez soccer MLS, Real Salt Lake $201,922 $3,424
represents only base
england Lewis hamiLton auto racing Formula One $18,473,684 $35,239
salary from the most
albania Lorik Cana soccer Turkey, Galatasaray $2,500,000 $3,846 equatorial rodoLfo Bodipo soccer Spain (D2), Elche $430,000 $17,544
recently completed guinea
algeria nadir BeLhadj soccer Qatar, Al Sadd $2,779,000 $4,029
season or calendar year eritrea zersenay tadese long- Road running $340,000 $369
american domata peko American NFL, Cincinnati Bengals $2,950,000 $7,874
from each sport, and samoa football distance
track
excludes any other andorra iLdefons Lima soccer Switzerland, AC Bellinzona $531,822 $43,770
estonia ragnar kLavan soccer Netherlands, AZ Alkmaar $2,006,000 $14,374
source of compensation, angola manuCho soccer Turkey, Manisaspor $865,579 $1,892 ethiopia tiLahun regassa long- Road running $318,250 $345
unless otherwise noted. argentina CarLos tevez soccer EPL, Manchester City $19,000,000 $7,666 distance
In countries where armenia henrikh soccer Ukraine, Shakhtar Donetsk $360,000 $2,770
track
official salary figures mkhitaryan
were unavailable, we australia andrew Bogut basketball NBA, Milwaukee Bucks $11,050,000 $47,615 Faroe Christian hoLst soccer Denmark, Silkeborg $1,630,000 $32,800
islands
estimated the number austria thomas vanek hockey NHL, Buffalo Sabres $6,400,000 $45,563
based on information Fiji vijay singh golf PGA Tour $1,334,262 $3,604
azerbaijan aLeksandr soccer Russia, Dynamo Moscow $1,287,000 $4,871
samedov Finland kimi raikkonen auto racing World Rally Championship $26,333,333 $44,688
from multiple sources,
including leagues, France franCk riBery soccer Bundesliga, $14,100,000 $41,226
Bayern Munich
agents, consulates, bahrain aBduLLah soccer Switzerland, $202,086 $24,409
French fLorent soccer EPL, Chelsea $3,441,823 $8,300
omar ismaiL Neuchatel Xamax
embassies, sports guiana maLouda
bangladesh shakiB aL hasan cricket IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders $425,000 $550
federations, cultural
centers and the U.N. All belarus aLexander hLeB soccer EPL, Birmingham City $3,300,000 $5,090 gabon danieL Cousin soccer Greece, Larissa $645,000 $7,647
figures converted to U.S. belgium vinCent soccer EPL, Manchester City $5,340,000 $44,254 gambia ousman jaLLow soccer Denmark, Brondby $314,000 $543
kompany
dollars. Retired and georgia zaza paChuLia basketball NBA, Atlanta Hawks $4,251,250 $2,522
banned athletes were germanY dirk nowitzki basketball NBA, Dallas Mavericks $17,278,618 $40,528
no female athlete made the list, but with $5,035,060 in earnings,
excluded from survey. belgian tennis player Kim Clijsters is closest. ghana miChaeL essien soccer EPL, Chelsea $5,500,000 $627
Per Capita GDP (Gross greece theodoros basketball Greece, Olympiakos $4,400,000 $29,006
Domestic Product), a papaLoukas
benin stephane soccer EPL, Sunderland $2,800,000 $739 greenland jesper Denmark, FC Copenhagen $923,440 $22,126
leading indicator of sessegnon soccer
gronkjaer
national wealth, is the bermuda reggie LamBe soccer England (D3), Bristol Rovers $480,000 $101,346 guadeloupe miCkaeL pietrus basketball NBA, Phoenix Suns $5,300,000 $7,900
market value of a bolivia marCeLo moreno soccer Ukraine, Shakhtar Donetsk $883,449 $1,758 guatemala CarLos ruiz soccer MLS, Philadelphia Union $306,670 $2,661
country’s goods and bosnia edin dzeko soccer EPL, Manchester City $8,470,000 $4,525 guinea iBrahima yattara soccer Turkey, Trabzonspor $717,000 $470
services divided by its botswana mogogi soccer South Africa, $354,000 $5,959 guinea- aLmami moreira soccer China, Dalian Aerbin $573,000 $517
population; we used gaBonamong SuperSport United
bissau
most recently available brazil feLipe massa auto racing Formula One $17,052,632 $8,114
GDP data for each brunei Craig adams hockey NHL, Pittsburgh Penguins $550,000 $26,385
darussalam haiti samueL basketball NBA, Sacramento Kings $12,200,000 $626
country. Special thanks daLemBert
bulgaria dimitar BerBatov soccer EPL, Manchester United $6,700,000 $6,458
to Nick Harris, editor of honduras david suazo soccer Serie A, Inter Milan $5,716,476 $1,930
burkina CharLes kaBore soccer France, $1,118,000 $517
sportingintelligence.com, Faso Marseille hungarY zoLtan gera soccer EPL, Fulham $2,970,000 $12,886
and Ori Cooper, director burundi saidi soccer Poland, MKS Cracovia $315,000 $151
of IMScouting, for ntiBazonkiza iceland eidur gudjohnsen soccer EPL, Fulham $2,538,000 $37,616
their assistance. india ms dhoni cricket IPL, Chennai Super Kings $1,800,000 $1,075
cameroon samueL eto’o soccer Serie A, Inter Milan $8,000,000 $1,136 indonesia BamBang soccer Indonesia, Persija Jakarta $160,000 $2,349
canada jason Bay baseball MLB, New York Mets $18,125,000 $39,795 pamungkas
iran masoud shojaei soccer La Liga, Osasuna $600,000 $4,863
cape verde Cafu soccer Cyprus, $287,000 $3,131
Anorthosis Famagusta iraq nashat akram soccer Qatar, Al-Wakrah $900,000 $830

dAtA gAthered by SulAimAn FolArin, JeFF gold, lizzie hAldAne, AdeSinA o. koiki, brAndon lilly,
60 John mAStroberArdino, JASon mAtloFF, doug mcintyre And gueorgui milkov.

0502INTER1_lo.indd 60 4/16/11 4:54 AM

 Country best-Paid Athlete Sport league, team Annual Per Country best-Paid Athlete Sport league, team Annual Per
(or Competition) Salary Capita (or Competition) Salary Capita
GDP GDP

ireland john o’shea soccer EPL, Manchester United $6,800,000 $49,115 poland roBert kuBiCa auto racing Formula One $10,657,895 $11,311
israel yossi Benayoun soccer EPL, Chelsea $6,859,267 $27,061 portugal Cristiano soccer La Liga, Real Madrid $19,500,000 $21,807
ronaLdo
italY vaLentino rossi motocross Moto GP $20,800,000 $35,289
puerto rico CarLos BeLtran baseball MLB, New York Mets $19,325,436 $24,744

jamaica riCardo gardner soccer EPL, Bolton $2,613,074 $4,566

qatar seBastian soria soccer Qatar, Qatar SC $391,000 $69,754
japan iChiro suzuki baseball MLB, Seattle Mariners $18,000,000 $39,864 quintana
jordan odai aL-saify soccer Cyprus, Alki Larnaca $145,000 $3,973
oose change loose c republic oF Christopher soccer EPL, Blackburn Rovers loose change
$3,000,000 $2,704 loose change loose change loose chan
kazakhstan nik antropov hockey NHL, Atlanta Thrashers $3,750,000 $6,981 the congo samBa
romania Cristian Chivu soccer Serie A, Inter Milan $5,013,000 $7,573
kenYa mCdonaLd mariga soccer Serie A, Inter Milan $11,300,000 $739
russia andrei kiriLenko basketball NBA, Utah Jazz $17,822,187 $8,736
kuwait Bader aL-mutwa soccer Saudi Arabia, Al-Nassr FC $400,000 $36,668
rwanda oLivier karekezi soccer Sweden, Oster $52,000 $527
kYrgYzstan mirLan murzaev soccer Israel, Hapoel Petah Tikva $150,000 $835

latvia andris Biedrins basketball NBA, Golden State Warriors $9,000,000 $11,505 samoa david tua boxing October 2009 bout $500,000 $2,926
san marino aLdo simonCini soccer Serie A, Cesena $172,000 $54,104
lebanon youssef soccer Bundesliga, FC Cologne $1,074,839 $8,175
mohamad saudi arabia mohammed noor soccer Saudi Arabia, Al-Ittihad $1,200,000 $14,353
lesotho LehLohonoLo soccer South Africa, Orlando Pirates $34,300 $780 scotland darren soccer EPL, Manchester United $5,000,000 $35,239
seema fLetCher
liberia sekou oLiseh soccer Russia, CSKA Moscow $573,000 $216 senegal desagana diop basketball NBA, Charlotte Bobcats $6,478,600 $1,018
libYa tariq eL taiB soccer Libya, Al Ahly Tripoli $1,130,000 $9,153 serbia peja stojakoviC basketball NBA, Dallas Mavericks $15,602,138 $5,612
liechtenstein martin soccer Austria, SV Ried $978,800 $134,392 seYchelles miChaeL soccer EPL, Wolverhampton $2,100,000 $9,354
stoCkLasa manCienne
lithuania Linas kLeiza basketball NBA, Toronto Raptors $4,995,000 $11,211 sierra leone madieu wiLLiams American NFL, Minnesota Vikings $2,974,000 $393
football
luxembourg andy sChLeCk road bicycle pro cycling $2,700,000 $108,706
racing singapore mardan mamat golf Asian, Euro golf tours $500,609 $37,394
slovakia marian hossa hockey NHL, Chicago Blackhawks $7,900,000 $16,203
macedonia goran pandev soccer Serie A, Inter Milan $4,250,000 $4,662 slovenia anze kopitar hockey NHL, Los Angeles Kings $6,000,000 $24,333
madagascar aniCet soccer France, AJ Auxerre $86,000 $448 somalia aBdisaLam soccer England (D2), Scunthorpe $340,000 $220
andrianantenaina iBrahim
malawi tamika soccer England (D2), Millwall $571,000 $318 south aFrica ernie eLs golf PGA Tour $5,347,012 $5,707
mkandawire south korea ji-sung park soccer EPL, Manchester United $4,700,000 $17,225
malaYsia Lee Chong wei badminton BWF Super Series $106,000 $6,967 spain fernando aLonso auto racing Formula One $22,736,842 $32,605
mali frederiC soccer La Liga, Sevilla $8,600,000 $679 sri lanka maheLa cricket IPL, Kochi Tuskers Kerala $1,500,000 $2,112
kanoute jayawardene
malta miChaeL mifsud soccer Malta, Qormi $1,142,000 $19,543 sudan LuoL deng basketball NBA, Chicago Bulls $11,355,850 $1,305
martinique ronny turiaf basketball NBA, New York Knicks $4,000,000 $14,400 suriname CLarenCe soccer Serie A, AC Milan $4,000,000 $5,707
mauritania pasCaL gourviLLe soccer France, Moissy-Cramayel $353,000 $866 seedorf
swaziland tony tsaBedze soccer South Africa, Santos $212,000 $2,668
mauritius diaLLo guidiLeye soccer France, Stade Brest $313,000 $6,729 Cape Town
mexico jorge de La rosa baseball MLB, Colorado Rockies $10,000,000 $7,956 sweden zLatan soccer Serie A, AC Milan $12,700,000 $43,903
moldova aLexandru soccer Russia, Dynamo Moscow $1,433,000 $1,500 iBrahimoviC
epureanu switzerland roger federer tennis ATP Tour $7,698,289 $65,003
mongolia hakuho sumo Japan Sumo Wrestling $400,000 $1,577 sYria sanhariB maLki soccer Belgium, Lokeren $400,000 $2,463
montenegro mirko vuCiniC soccer Serie A, AS Roma $6,020,000 $6,546
morocco marouane soccer EPL, Arsenal $4,247,000 $2,834 tahiti faBriCe santoro tennis ATP Tour $91,500 $16,858
Chamakh no pros from marshall
taiwan hong-Chih kuo baseball MLB, Los Angeles Dodgers $2,725,000 $18,500
mozambique mate simao junior soccer Greece, Panathinaikos $516,000 $418 islands, tuvalu and
tajikistan farkhod vasiev soccer Russia, Zhemchuzhina- $145,000 $716 vanuatu. Salaries
Sochi
northern graeme golf PGA, European tours $5,176,586 $35,239 not available for
tanzania hasheem thaBeet basketball NBA, Houston Rockets $4,793,280 $526
ireland mCdoweLL Afghanistan, Anguilla,
thailand thongChai jaidee golf European and Asian tours $1,400,000 $3,894 Aruba, bahamas,
namibia CoLLin Benjamin soccer Bundesliga, Hamburg $1,000,000 $4,288
togo emmanueL soccer EPL, Manchester City $11,900,000 $480 barbados, belize,
netherlands nigeL de jong soccer EPL, Manchester City $10,500,000 $47,889 adeBayor bhutan, Cambodia,
new frederiC soccer EPL, West Ham United $2,972,339 $37,124 tonga Chris kemoeatu American NFL, Pittsburgh Steelers $2,369,000 $3,259 Cayman islands,
caledonia piquionne football
dominica, grenada,
new zealand russeLL yachting RC 44 Championship Tour $10,000,000 $27,384 trinidad anthony American NFL, Minnesota Vikings $1,425,000 $15,782
Coutts and tobago herrera football
kiribati, monaco,
montserrat, myanmar,
nicaragua viCente padiLLa baseball MLB, Los Angeles Dodgers $2,000,000 $1,114 tunisia karim haggui soccer Bundesliga, Hannover 96 $820,000 $3,852
nepal, Palau, St. kitts
niger aLhassane soccer Morocco, FUS de Rabat $200,000 $343 turkeY hedo turkogLu basketball NBA, Orlando Magic $9,800,000 $8,215 and nevis, St. lucia,
issoufou
St. vincent and
nigeria john mikeL oBi soccer EPL, Chelsea $5,800,000 $1,123 the grenadines,
uae ismaiL matar soccer UAE, Al-Wahda $360,000 $54,138
niue miChaeL junior track per six weeks of training $5,000 $5,800 turkmenistan
uganda mathias kiwanuka American NFL, New York Giants $1,776,000 $523
jaCkson and field
football or yemen.
north korea an yong-hak soccer J-League, Kashiwa Reysol $619,107 $499 ukraine vitaLi kLitsChko boxing estimated average $6-8M $2,569
jong tae-se soccer Germany (D2), VFL Bochum $619,107 per fight
norwaY john Carew soccer EPL, Stoke City $4,500,000 $78,674 uruguaY diego forLan soccer La Liga, Atletico Madrid $7,169,746 $9,376 the 24-year-old dallas
u.s. virgin tim dunCan basketball NBA, San Antonio Spurs $18,700,000 $13,660 native is the first
islands American to play pro
oman aLi aL haBsi soccer EPL, Wigan Athletic $3,000,000 $18,876 soccer in vietnam,
usa aLex rodriguez baseball MLB, New York Yankees $32,000,000 $44,872
where he is treated like
uzbekistan maksim shatskikh soccer Ukraine, Arsenal Kiev $120,000 $1,199 a rock star. And because
pakistan shahid afridi cricket Pakistan national team $136,000 $886 his parents were born
salary (100K), plus est. pro
cricket salary (two teams) venezuela johan santana baseball MLB, New York Mets $21,644,707 $11,404 there, he’s expected to
soon be granted dual
palestine fadi Lafi soccer Oman, Saham $65,000 $1,367 vietnam Lee nguyen soccer Vietnam, Becamex $180,000 $1,058 citizenship.
panama CarLos Lee baseball MLB, Houston Astros $19,000,000 $7,155 Binh Duong

papua new nev Costigan rugby NRL, Newcastle Knights $216,667 $1,174
guinea wales ryan giggs soccer EPL, Manchester United $6,300,000 $35,239
paraguaY roque soccer EPL, Manchester City $7,668,947 $2,314
santa Cruz
zambia Chris katongo soccer Greece, AO Skoda Xanthi $315,300 $985
peru CLaudio pizarro soccer Bundesliga, Werder Bremen $5,448,894 $4,403
zimbabwe Benjani soccer EPL, Blackburn Rovers $3,405,584 $324
philippines manny paCquiao boxing two fights in 2010 $32,000,000 $1,747 mwaruwari

61

0502INTER1_lo.indd 61 4/16/11 4:54 AM

 PREP
WORK

If A LOCKOUt COMES, EVEN NBA

ALL-StARS wILL BE HUNtING DOwN
qUARtERS fOR tHE LAUNDROMAt.
UNLESS, LIKE tHIS GUy, tHEy’VE
ALREADy StASHED A fEw.

BY KEVIN LOVE, AS TOLD TO RIC BUCHER

PHOTOGRAPHS BY JAKE CHESSUM

0502LOVEXX_LO.indd 62 4/15/11 11:51 PM

 63

0502LOVEXX_LO.indd 63 4/15/11 11:51 PM

 All About the Money

LAST YEAR, AFTER MY

second season, I felt we
were going to have a
lockout, so I started
thinking, How much do
I have to put away if we
miss a whole year? Every
meeting we have with
the players’ union begins
and ends with a reminder
that you don’t want to
become that guy who’s
out there bagging
groceries. I don’t have
the most to worry

Rick Nash MaRquis GRissoM

how to
All-Star Blue Jackets right wing who won the 2003-04 All-Star centerfielder for the 1994 Expos, MLB’s best
handle Maurice Richard trophy as the NHL’s leading goal scorer team (74–40) when a strike cut the season short and
having before players were locked out for the 2004-05 season. canceled the postseason.

too much
time on
your
hands
If the NBA and NfL unions
can’t work things out with
owners, these former players
offer some insight that might
just help current pros adjust
to a work stoppage.
Our union reps were telling us there
might not be a season and to save
money and be smart with our
finances. But I was only 20 years old
and never really believed it would
happen until it did. My agent
immediately arranged for me to play
in Switzerland with HC Davos. Almost all of us went to
Europe because we wanted to play. I kept thinking
we’d work it out and that my time in Switzerland was
temporary, but then Christmas came and went, and
more time passed and I realized we were going to
lose a whole season. So I settled in and made the
We were a special team. There’s never
been any doubt in my mind that we
would have won the 1994 World
Series. But I don’t feel sorry for myself
or regret our strike. We had to take a
stand to improve our careers. When I
came into the league in 1989 the
minimum salary was $68,000; now it’s $414,000. Plus,
our pensions improved. Looking back, the saddest
thing to me is that it was the beginning of the end
for baseball in Montreal. We could have had a dynasty
with guys like Larry Walker, Moises Alou and Pedro
Martinez. If we had won a World Series, we probably
SHIRT BY CALVIN KLEIN UNDERWEAR

most of it. The paychecks were a lot smaller and that
by morty Ain was an adjustment, but I got to spend eight months
living in Europe and won the Swiss championship. The
experience was positive for me, but it was unfair to
the fans. It’s taken the NHL some time to pack the
arenas again in a lot of cities, including Columbus.
would have gotten a nice, new stadium down by the
water. Fans would have been invested in us. I told
management I would have taken a pay cut to build
with that group in Montreal, but it wasn’t meant to
be. Folks were deflated after the strike, and they
never recovered.

64

0502LOVEXX_LO.indd 64 4/15/11 11:51 PM


about, but losing a whole year of pay is a lot of
money for anybody. We have a lot of young
guys on rookie contracts without big shoe
deals, so it’s not going to be easy on some
players. And a lot of guys have been living pay-
check to paycheck, as if a lockout would never
come. It’s different for us compared to the
younger guys at the last lockout, because they
signed big deals coming into the league.
I started putting away money my first year in
the NBA. My parents still live in the house I
grew up in [in Lake Oswego, Ore.], so I bought it
and renovated it over the past year. It improved
my parents’ quality of life, but it’s also a great
investment, much better than selling it and
buying another house. So we basically gutted
it: new roof, windows, plumbing, heating sys-
tem, light fixtures. Now when you’re in the
house, it feels like 2011, not 1990. The only things
left are my trophies and my old room. My par-
ents wanted to keep it pretty much the same. I
also bought them a couple of really nice cars.
And I bought my first car—a new 2009 Range
Rover, the one I still have—and got a nice apart-
oppoSITE pAgE fRom LEfT: IHA ICoN SmI/NEWSCom; RoNALD C. moDRA/SpoRTS ImAgERY/gETTY ImAgES. THIS pAgE fRom LEfT: AL mESSERSCHmIDT/gETTY ImAgES;
ment. Then I sat down with my agent, my
financial adviser and my parents and told them
JeRRy Rice
Hall of fame receiver who caught a then-record 22
touchdowns with the 49ers in just 15 games during the
NfL’s strike-shortened 1987 season.
Oh, my god, that season was so
tough. It was just awful, sitting and
waiting and working out and then
sitting and waiting. I got restless. I
think about the guys today heading
ANDY HAYT/NBAE/gETTY ImAgES; SCoTT gRANT/mUNDo SpoRT ImAgES
into this, and I realize what’s about
to hit them. If they have scabs like
we did, they’ll just lose their minds. I remember
thinking, Come on now, you shouldn’t be out there
playing; we’re holding out for a reason. But I guess
for them it was an opportunity to showcase what
they could do. It just added to the stress of being
off the field though. That’s our office. It’s where we
make our money. And seeing other guys out there
in our jerseys, using our facilities, riding on our
bus was not fun. We rotated certain players
assigned to show up at our building with picket
signs while the rest of us got together to work out
and wait by the phone.
0502LOVEXX_LO.indd 65
i staRted puttiNG away 75% of eveRy check My fiRst
yeaR iN the Nba. that peRceNtaGe has GoNe up siNce.
aNd i’M fRuGal. i doN’t have aNybody oN My payRoll
otheR thaN My tRaiNeR, My aGeNt aNd My chef.
I had a number in mind I wanted to put away
every paycheck. They said I should enjoy
myself a little and tweaked it down, but I was
still putting away 75% of every check my first
year, and the percentage has gone up the past
two years. The way I look at it, that money is
generating interest.
A year ago, I was planning to buy an off-
season property in Southern California. I
talked to Tyson Chandler about it when we
were on Team USA together in Istanbul. He
showed me photos and a video of his house in
Rancho Santa Fe. I looked into a couple of
houses in Santa Monica and Brentwood, but I
decided to hold off until after the lockout and
see what my options are. I don’t know what’s
going to happen, and I want to see where I’m at
financially before I invest. You just have to see
shawN keMp
Six-time NBA All-Star with the Seattle SuperSonics
who battled weight issues after the lockout shortened
his 1998-99 season with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
I anticipated the lockout was
coming a long time before it did.
I’d been in the league for almost
a decade, and I knew our union
wasn’t seeing eye to eye with
owners on the cap. I saved all
my salary and just lived on my
endorsement money leading up to the lockout to
be smart. But I wasn’t as smart with my condi-
tioning. I wasn’t lazy, but I was afraid to play
pickup and get hurt, and you can’t use team
workout facilities or communicate with trainers.
I was always hopeful we’d get the season going,
and I wanted to be healthy, but I should have
been a lot better about hitting the treadmill and
stair-climber. Lesson learned. I’m 41 years old
now and in a lot better shape than I was coming
back from that lockout.
where the numbers will be for the league. Are
there going to be guaranteed contracts? Are
they going to grandfather in existing deals? I
look at some of the deals guys signed before
the rookie salary scale and sometimes wish I
were born earlier so I could’ve really cashed in.
But I’ve already set myself up for the sum-
mer and next fall. I’ll get a place on a short-term
rental near the beach—I was born near the
water, so it’s in my blood—work out with my
trainer in Santa Monica, weight train at UCLA
and do my yoga in Brentwood. I’ve talked to
veterans who went through the last lockout.
They all say you have to find a routine that is
going to keep your mind and body solid,
because you don’t want to come back and get
injured right away.
I don’t have anybody on my payroll other
JohNNy shepheRd
Buffalo Bills replacement player for two games during
the 1987 NfL strike.
I had just been released from the CFL.
My wife was going through a tough
pregnancy, and I had no income and
no insurance. I was 30, bench-pressing
450 pounds and running a 4.3 40. I
could play! I had no reservations at
all; I needed a job. Some of the other
guys were big bail bondsmen, guys straight out of
prison, players who peaked in college. But I was a
football player. Once I got out on the field, I realized
that the NFL had missed out on me, and I’d missed
out on the money. The striking players definitely
didn’t like us much. They made poor efforts to
intimidate. They threw eggs at our bus; some guy
showed up with a big dog. I played only two games
before the checks stopped coming, but they paid my
insurance for a whole year, which is all I really could
ask for. It would have been nice to keep my jersey
though. They were too cheap for that.
65
4/15/11 11:51 PM
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66
0502LOVEXX_LO.indd 66
All About the Money
The 22-year-old
Love, who earned
$3,638,280 for the
2010-11 season,
hopes to parlay
his streak of 53
double-doubles
into a sweet
sneaker deal.
than my agent, my trainer and my personal first-class plane tickets whenever I fly, and I
chef. I live by myself. With the threat of a have two Rolexes, although I did get them at a
lockout, I wanted to get my monthly nut down heavily discounted price. But, otherwise, the
any way I could. I cut out some nonsense things I like—sweats, shoes, gear—I get for
spending—you know, going out to dinner three free. I’m in sweats whenever I can be.
or four times a week with friends and picking I’m hoping that my endorsements help a
i do spluRGe a little. i fly fiRst class aNd have
two Rolexes. but Most of the thiNGs i like—sweats,
sNeakeRs, GeaR—i Get foR fRee.
up the bill. I hired my chef instead, which little. My agent is working on my next shoe
becomes a tax write-off. If people want to come deal with the Chinese company Peak, and it’s
over and eat, they’re welcome, but this way I crazy how much more I might get now that I’m
jEff gRIffITH/US pRESSWIRE
save money and I’m taking care of my body by an All-Star. They’re talking four times the
eating all the right things. My agent says all the value of my deal now, which would put me in
time, “You’re so frugal.” I know it’s because he the top 10% of player shoe deals. What a lot of
wants me to enjoy life too, and knows how people may not know about Minneapolis is
responsible I am. And I do splurge a little. I buy that we have as many Fortune 500 companies
4/15/11 11:51 PM
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0502LOVEXX_LO.indd 67 4/15/11 11:51 PM

 All About the Money

NFL AGENT CONFIDENTIAL

Will tHe Good news, fans: Most of the agents polled (80.8%) don’t expect the season to
locKout be stunted. “There’s too much money to be lost, and not just for players and
delaY tHe owners,” says one prominent agent. “Think about the stadium workers, team
2011 season? caterers, hotels, bars and restaurants in NFL cities. The American economy is in
bad enough shape. The NFL doesn’t need the PR hit.” Now the bad news: Of the
19.2% who said yes, many think the owners are in it for the long haul: “They
Download scanner at
know they made a terrible deal in 2006. They’re not going to budge.” http://gettag.mobi
(see page 8 for details)

jACKET BY TommY HILfIgER, SWEATER BY ERmENEgILDo ZEgNA, jEANS AND BELT BY THE jEAN SHop, BRACELET BY LoUIS VUITToN, WATCH BY RoLEx, SNEAKERS BY gUCCI
Thanks to his personal chef (tax
write-off!), Love avoids empty
calories like these.

i might do a little ochocinco route and go play

another sport. when i was little, i wanted to be got a Plan B, two of them actually. I’d like to
pursue my broadcasting career. I’ll probably go
a pitcher. maybe i’ll try out for the twins.
back to UCLA and finish my communications
degree. Obviously there wouldn’t be NBA games
to call, but maybe I could work some college
here as any city outside New York. I have some I’m not rooting for a lockout, but there is one games. Or I might do a little Ochocinco route
local endorsement deals with Target and Best thing I’d like to try that my current contract and go play another sport. When I was little, I
Buy and Right Guard, and some of those could prohibits: I’ve always wanted to jump out of a wanted to be a pitcher. Maybe I’ll go try out for
go national in the next six to eight months. I’m plane and try skydiving. You might not know it, the Twins. I still think I can do it. I last pitched
set to shoot some commercials and sign some but I’m somewhat of a wild man. Now, I’m not when I was 15 and had a fastball [reportedly
new deals this off-season. I have to play a certain going to do something illegal, and I won’t do it clocked at 90 mph], curve and changeup. I really
number of games to get paid on my shoe deal, if the contract terms still apply, but if they thought that was going to be my sport. I’m sure
but on the other endorsements I get paid no don’t, I just might. I could still throw the ball around for a living
matter what. That will help if there’s a lockout. Who knows how long we’ll be out. But I’ve if it came to that. Ω

68

0502LOVEXX_LO.indd 68 4/15/11 11:51 PM

 All About the Money

We SuRVeYeD 272 teAMS IN 14 MAJoR Rank team league Average

Annual
Average
Weekly
PRo leAGueS, CoVeRING SeVeN SPoRtS, SPANNING Salary
Per Player
Salary
Per Player
10 CouNtRIeS, CoMPRISING 7,802 AthleteS
MAKING A CoMbINeD $15.2 bIllIoN IN SAlARY. 54 chennai IPl $3,583,333 $68,910
suPer kings
the eND ReSult IS the ... 55 washington nBa $3,533,342 $67,949
wizards

100
56 schalke 04 Bundesliga $3,525,614 $67,800
57 los angeles MlB $3,472,967 $66,788
dodgers
oose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loose change 58 MiaMi
loose change loose change loose change loose heat loose
change $3,439,822
nBachange $66,150 loose change loose chang
change
59 cleveland nBa $3,438,187 $66,119
cavaliers
60 delhi daredevils IPl $3,392,500 $65,240

61 colorado rockies MlB $3,390,310 $65,198

BEST-PAYing teams 62 as roMa serie a

63 newcastle united ePl
64 atlanta Braves MlB
$3,383,783 $65,073
$3,370,667 $64,821
$3,346,257 $64,351

in the world 65 BaltiMore

orioles
66 texas rangers
67 detroit
red wings
MlB

MlB
nhl
$3,280,925 $63,095

$3,182,733 $61,206
$2,957,955 $56,884

The sports and leagues: Aussie rules football (AFl), baseball (Mlb, NPb), basketball (NbA), cricket (IPl), hockey (Nhl), 68 valencia la liga $2,927,719 $56,302
football (CFl, NFl), soccer (bundesliga, ePl, la liga, MlS, Serie A, SPl). The countries: Australia, Canada, england, 69 sacraMento kings nBa $2,919,893 $56,152
Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Scotland, Spain, uSA. The results: 70 washington nFl $2,913,048 $56,020
redskins

71 seattle Mariners MlB $2,884,153 $55,464
72 PortsMouth ePl $2,875,947 $55,307
TECHNICALLY SPEAKING
Rank team league Average Average Rank team league Average Average 73 Milwaukee MlB $2,849,911 $54,806
Annual Weekly Annual Weekly Brewers
these numbers
Salary Salary Salary Salary 74 new orleans nFl $2,845,831 $54,728
were compiled by Nick Per Player Per Player Per Player Per Player saints
harris, editor of
75 Minnesota nFl $2,826,007 $54,346
sportingintelligence.com. vikings
1 Barcelona la liga $7,910,737 $152,130 29 kolkata knight IPl $4,448,333 $85,545
“Average Annual Salary” riders 76 werder BreMen Bundesliga $2,807,018 $53,981
represents base player 2 real Madrid la liga $7,356,632 $141,474
30 new York Mets MlB $4,401,752 $84,649 77 Boston Bruins nhl $2,742,614 $52,743
salaries from current or 3 new York MlB $6,756,301 $129,929
Yankees 78 chicago nhl $2,725,130 $52,406
most recently completed Blackhawks
4 los angeles nBa $6,540,690 $125,782 31 detroit Pistons nBa $4,394,521 $84,510
seasons from each lakers 79 chicago Bears nFl $2,719,637 $52,301
sport, and excludes 32 charlotte nBa $4,392,059 $84,463
5 orlando Magic nBa $6,367,114 $122,445 BoBcats 80 seattle nFl $2,697,114 $51,868
endorsements, bonuses, seahawks
6 chelsea ePl $6,020,741 $115,783 33 san Francisco MlB $4,377,716 $84,187
appearance fees and giants
7 inter Milan serie a $5,999,643 $115,378
any other source of 34 golden state nBa $4,371,404 $84,065 81 PhiladelPhia nhl $2,683,696 $51,610
8 Boston red sox MlB $5,991,203 $115,215 warriors FlYers
extra compensation. All
figures converted to u.S. 9 denver nuggets nBa $5,990,174 $115,196 35 Milwaukee Bucks nBa $4,346,469 $83,586 82 dallas cowBoYs nFl $2,679,093 $51,521
dollars. All IPl annual 10 Manchester citY ePl $5,863,585 $112,761 36 Portland trail nBa $4,276,195 $82,235 83 san Jose sharks nhl $2,673,712 $51,418
figures pro rata from Blazers 84 stuttgart Bundesliga $2,666,667 $51,282
weekly pay. 11 utah Jazz nBa $5,829,643 $112,109 37 new orleans nBa $4,133,364 $79,488 85 oakland raiders nFl $2,653,532 $51,029
hornets
12 BaYern Munich Bundesliga $5,780,358 $111,161 86 Borussia Bundesliga $2,649,825 $50,958
38 Juventus serie a $4,127,666 $79,378 dortMund
13 PhiladelPhia MlB $5,765,879 $110,882
Phillies 39 Phoenix suns nBa $4,088,782 $78,630 87 Minnesota nBa $2,641,170 $50,792
14 ac Milan serie a $5,647,633 $108,608 40 kings xi PunJaB IPl $4,065,833 $78,189 tiMBerwolves

15 Boston celtics nBa $5,236,922 $100,710

88 vancouver nhl $2,639,423 $50,758
canucks
16 Manchester ePl $5,106,214 $98,196 41 indiana Pacers nBa $4,023,026 $77,366
89 ottawa senators nhl $2,627,971 $50,538
united 42 chicago Bulls nBa $4,016,979 $77,250
90 green BaY Packers nFl $2,592,050 $49,847
17 chicago cuBs MlB $5,001,893 $96,190 43 san antonio sPurs nBa $4,000,272 $76,928

18 houston nBa $4,972,115 $95,618 44 MuMBai indians IPl $3,997,500 $76,875
rockets 91 atletico Madrid la liga $2,589,754 $49,803
45 deccan chargers IPl $3,993,333 $76,795
NBA teams paid their 19 PhiladelPhia nBa $4,954,303 $95,275 92 cincinnati reds MlB $2,531,571 $48,684
players an average of 76ers 46 toronto nBa $3,915,801 $75,304
raPtors 93 Montreal nhl $2,520,660 $48,474
$4.6M a year, the highest 20 liverPool ePl $4,935,847 $94,920 canadiens
of any league. Lowest? 47 detroit tigers MlB $3,914,823 $75,285
The $97K per year paid 94 west haM united ePl $2,517,851 $48,420
48 st. louis MlB $3,904,947 $75,095
by CFL teams. 21 dallas Mavericks nBa $4,882,757 $93,899 cardinals 95 new JerseY nhl $2,481,458 $47,720
devils
22 arsenal ePl $4,758,252 $91,505 49 new York knicks nBa $3,873,496 $74,490
96 calgarY FlaMes nhl $2,480,500 $47,702
23 chicago MlB $4,732,926 $91,018 50 oklahoMa citY nBa $3,863,639 $74,301
white sox thunder 97 detroit lions nFl $2,476,803 $47,631
24 atlanta hawks nBa $4,665,981 $89,730 98 new York nhl $2,450,313 $47,121
rangers
25 Minnesota twins MlB $4,509,480 $86,721 51 aston villa ePl $3,848,229 $74,004
99 san Francisco nFl $2,446,040 $47,039
26 roYal IPl $4,506,667 $86,667 52 los angeles nBa $3,762,057 $72,347 49ers
challengers cliPPers
Bangalore 100 washington nhl $2,445,870 $47,036
53 new JerseY nets nBa $3,658,744 $70,360 caPitals
27 MeMPhis nBa $4,477,489 $86,106
grizzlies
28 los angeles MlB $4,469,134 $85,945
angels For teams 101-200, check out our expanded rankings—for free!—at http://es.pn/dTtSgE.

ESPN/SPortiNg iNtElligENcE rEPort

69

0502INTER2_lo.indd 69 4/16/11 3:41 AM

 72

0502PAWN_LO.indd 72 4/14/11 9:48 PM

 by shaun assael

aDDICTED
TO

pawn photographs by William mebane

when athletes can’t keep up

with their luxe lifestyle,
they know where to go for a loan.

Championship rings are king at

pawnshops, where they’re
exchanged for cold cash.

0502PAWN_LO.indd 73 4/14/11 9:48 PM

 All About the Money

BROCKWILLIAMSISN’T
happy to hear from me.
I’ve tracked down the obscure former Patriots
cornerback to ask about the Super Bowl XXXVI
ring he pawned a decade ago for $2,600. “Ah, man,
that was a bad time,” he says over the phone, let-
ting the space between his words linger. “I’m just
trying to put that all behind me.”
Unfortunately for Williams, that’s hard to do
when America sees your ring every week in the
opening montage of the hit TV show Pawn Stars,
harder still when celebrity pawnbroker Rick
Harrison brags about being the guy who has it.
Gold, cars, Rolexes … yawn. But a Super Bowl
ring? “You want the thing a guy worked his
whole life to get,” says Harrison.
His Gold & Silver Pawn Shop in Las Vegas
is a window onto our times, with Harrison
the appraiser of our excess. Desperate people
populate his tales, many of them jocks. There
was the time in 1999, for instance, when IBF
super featherweight champ Diego Corrales, who
was reckless in the ring and with his money,
traded in his title belt. “I think I gave him $1,500
and sold it five months later for $3,000,” Harrison
says. In another sad case, long jumper Joe Greene
ventured into Harrison’s store in 2003 with the
bronze medal he’d won at the Atlanta Olympics
Fittingly, Budd set up shop in
seven years earlier. “I think it’s all he had left,” an old bank building on the
says Harrison. iconic object; it’s that he did it at the most public Kansas-Missouri border.
The guy’s got a million stories. And he’s not the pawnshop in America. If he’d gone to the Beverly
only one. For every champ who needs a quick fix Loan Company in Beverly Hills, for example,
for that untenable monthly nut, there’s a pawn- he’d have met Jordan Tabach-Bank standing
broker ready to make his ring ka-ching. “Athletes beside artwork by Picasso and assuring well- ACCORDING TOan informal survey of
are perfect customers because they’re collateral heeled customers that he “deals in discretion.” pawnbrokers, the overwhelming majority of
athletes make their payments and get back their
merchandise. But rules are rules, and when a
pawnbrokers don’t ask questions. more important, pawnbroker’s patience wears out, collateral is
they don’t answer to the financial industry, so loans converted back to cash. Sometimes items end up
don’t affect personal credit ratings. on eBay. That’s where Krupnik went when a
Nebraska football reserve named Joe Horst
neglected to reclaim the 1995 national champion-
rich but cash poor,” says Steve Krupnik, a former Tabach-Bank has seen rings pawned to pay for ship ring he pawned for $400 in 2003. A day
broker and author of Pawnonomics. a kid’s private school tuition, for a wife’s plastic before the auction ended, Horst showed up at
For your basic overextended athlete, pawn- surgery and for a nursing home for Mom. “I don’t Krupnik’s store in South Bend, Ind., begging to
shops do what conventional banks won’t. Good ask why people want to pawn things,” he says, buy back the ring. “I said he’d have to win it,”
luck finding a neighborhood loan agent willing “but nine times out of 10 they tell me.” Krupnik says. After Horst bid wildly, the pawn-
to dole out 10 grand for those new rims you can’t Last year, an NFL lineman walked in with a broker revealed a softer side: “At the end of the
afford because you fell short of your incentive Super Bowl ring and a story that’s typical pawn day, I took what he owed, maybe $600.”
bonus. Or maybe you need some off-the-radar math: bad investments plus impending divorce. Tim Robins, a former TV producer who runs
money for that off-the-radar honey. Whatever. “I worked my ass off for this ring,” he said to championship-rings.net in Nashville, offers a
Pawnbrokers don’t ask questions. More impor- Tabach-Bank. “I don’t want to see it go.” Recently, more intricate cautionary tale. A Giants player
tant, they don’t answer to the financial industry. though, the lineman stopped making interest recently sold his 2007 Super Bowl ring to a local
“Pawned loans aren’t reported to credit agencies, payments on the $12,000 loan, putting him in jeweler, who in turn sold it to a local judge. When
so they don’t affect personal credit ratings,” says default. Still, Tabach-Bank can’t bear to sell the the judge called Robins to discern the ring’s
Krupnik. That matters to an athlete who’s a ring. He’s keeping it in a vault instead of the worth, he was floored by the bargain he’d got,
mortgage payment down on his mansion and showroom. “I can only imagine how many hours prompting him to sell it to another middleman,
can’t afford another financial red flag. of practice it took to get it,” he says. “I really want who funneled it to an auction house. A Giants
Williams’ mistake wasn’t that he off-loaded an to work with him.” executive saw it displayed online, resulting in

74

0502PAWN_LO.indd 74 4/15/11 12:07 AM

 All About the Money
one red-faced player, but neither Robins nor a
team spokesman, who had heard the story,
knows what happened to the ring. If the player
did buy it back, it cost him upward of $50,000,
roughly four times its original price.
Robins isn’t a pawnbroker himself. He just
buys from them, then resells the merchandise on
his website. Clients include other middlemen
and obsessive fans. Recently, a 10-year-old boy
drew national attention for spending $8,500
of his college fund on William Perry’s Super
Bowl XX ring so he could return it to The Fridge.
But most transactions are far more circumspect
and far less heartwarming. So Robins doesn’t
even reveal the names etched into the rings he
offers, like the 14-karat gold band from Super
Bowl XXXII he’s selling for $29,995. Only serious,
vetted buyers get that information.
Don Budd, another keeper of industry secrets,
estimates that he has 100 athletes as regular
clients at Central Pawn Shop, which he runs out
of an old bank building on the Kansas-Missouri
border. If one of their rings ends up on the busi-
ness end of a bad loan, he quietly contacts the
team that issued it. “I’ve called Al Davis, and he’s
bought back rings for players,” says Budd. “It’s an
emotional thing, so I try to keep it in the family.”
Because there’s no blue book, valuing rings is
more art than science. But there are a few
accepted truths. Today’s rings are worth more
because the diamonds are smoother. A front
office exec’s scaled-down Super Bowl ring can be
worth half as much as a player’s. And teams
have distinct reputations: the bands of the 1970s
A’s, for example, aren’t highly valued because
their penny-pinching owner, Charlie Finley,
sanctioned only cheap materials. Anything
Patriots, on the other hand, goes up-up-up.
Still, as Budd notes, “It’s not what the ring’s
worth. It’s what the player needs. I had a guy
who pawned his Super Bowl ring because his old
the men’s tattoos matched the one sported by a local
athlete with money woes. “i’m pretty sure they were
there because it was the end of the line.”
teammates were coming to town and he wanted
a couple of grand to show them a good time.”
Krupnik remembers a NASCAR champ who
walked into his place in Indiana talking about
losing his wallet. “He was on his way to the
Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and he was in a
pinch,” Krupnik says. “He took off his Winston
Cup ring and asked, ‘How much can I get for
this?’ I lent him $4,000; I’d have done more, but
it’s all he needed. He sent me a check with
interest two weeks later, and I sent him back his
ring. It happens every day.”
76
0502PAWN_LO.indd 76
NFL AGENT CONFIDENTIAL
WHAT We asked each member of our 26-man agent panel to give a best guess on
PERCENTAGE how many colleagues are cheating. An average of those estimates paints a
OF AGENTS hazardous picture: 51.7%. And that, of course, is not legal. Worse, the range
PAY COLLEGE went from 20% all the way up to 80%. Funny thing is, many agree it’s a huge
PLAYERS? waste of time (and untraceable wads of cash). “I’d say 75% pay players,” says
a member of the brotherhood. “And 75% of the paid players end up signing
with someone else.”
In the market for a Lombardi
Trophy or an award from the city
of Oakland for winning Super
Bowl XI? Budd has both.
Krupnik won’t reveal who the star was. The
pawnbrokers’ code, after all, is, what goes on in
the shop stays in the shop. I e-mail NASCAR
legend Darryl Waltrip on a lark to see if the story
happens to be about him. “I don’t remember it,”
he says. “But don’t let the facts get in the way of a
good story. Go ahead and use it.”
And therein lies a central truth of pawnshops.
For some, there’s no shame in patronizing a place
in which the proprietor sits behind bars to pro-
tect himself from the clientele. But say you’re
a former baseball bad boy who’s gone on to a
career in finance and you’re caught pawning
your most cherished mementos? In 2009, a
Japanese film crew put a camera in a Beverly
Hills pawnshop and recorded Lenny Dykstra
pawning the 1986 World Series ring he won with
the Mets. “A lot of pawnshops are in neighbor-
hoods celebrities don’t want to be seen in,” says
Todd Hills, the proprietor of internetpawn.com.
“We offer the ultimate in discretion.” Hills, who
maintains a 2,500-square-foot office near a
private airstrip in Denver, has been offered
Gulfstream jets and mansions by athletes whose
high-flying days are suddenly behind them. He
says agents usually initiate the contact, saying,
Scan here for a
bonuS queStion!
(see page 8 for details)
“My client needs $10,000 to $50,000, quickly. How
does this work?”
As Hills recently explained to the agent of a
10-year NFL vet who’d landed on the unemploy-
ment line, he lends 50% of an item’s market value
and charges 4% interest per month. (The industry
term is “option charge,” and Florida allows the
nation’s highest, at 25%.) In this case, the player
mailed Hills a watch he bought for $90,000 and a
six-carat princess-cut diamond ring right off his
wife’s finger. Hills assessed their market value at
roughly a third of the cost, $60,000, and the
player got a check for half that, with a bill for
$1,200 in monthly interest payments.
That’s hard-core pawn. And it’s not just jocks
who grab for their stones when the gravy
train crashes; their entourages do too. Recently,
several guys clad in hoodies walked into Philly’s
venerable Carver W. Reed Co. (est. 1860), with
enough jewelry to outfit the Oscars: flashy
earrings, gold necklaces and a 50-carat diamond
cross so big that owner Tod Gordon was thrown.
“It was almost too gaudy to sell,” he says.
What caught Gordon’s eye, though, were the
matching tattoos on the men’s necks. A lifelong
Philly fan, he believed the design matched a tat
sported by a local celebrity athlete whose money
woes were making news. “I’m pretty sure they were
there because it was the end of the line,” he says.
Most states require pawnbrokers to file police
reports to make sure items haven’t been stolen,
which is how former Dodger Jim Campanis got
back a Rolex swiped from his golf bag last fall. A
detective working the case in La Verne, Calif.,
thumbing through a stack of pawnshop reports,
came across a watch that fit the description. It
was sold to a broker nearby.
But the happy ending came with a price. After
a 90-day police hold on the item, Campanis had
to buy back his timepiece. “In cases like this, the
pawnshop is a victim, too,” says detective Michael
Scranton. Campanis, son of the late Dodgers
exec Al Campanis, was luckier with the 1988
World Series ring also lifted that day. Scranton
recovered it in a search of the thief’s home.
“Sometimes things work out,” he says.
And sometimes they don’t. Krupnik, who’s
now an industry consultant, knows an NFL draft
pick who pawned a ring from a big college bowl
game because he was injured in the second half.
“Take it,” the kid said. “It’s bad karma for me.” Ω
4/15/11 12:07 AM
 All About the Money

they RAce cARS, eAt hot dogS, thRow Sport Athlete league/tour Money Money
type
dARtS, pound FAceS—And MAke the beSt
poSSible living

BEST-PAID
distance
running
Samuel Various 2010 Prize money $617,000

doing it. (men) Wanjiru

theSe ARe the ... distance
liliya Various 2010 Prize money $695,000

ATHLETESIN
running
(women) Shobukhova

30
drag racing
larry

Dixon NHRA Top Fuel 2010 Prize money $1,371,000

eating joey CheStnut Major League

Eating
2010 earningS $218,500

equestrian
(men) mclain WarD Show Jumping 2010 earningS $1,280,788

oose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loose
change loose change loose change change
$627,907 loose change loose
equestrian
(women) laura kraut
Show Jumping 2010 earningS

Bassmaster
fishing
kevin vanDam Elite Series
2010 earningS $915,500

SPORTS
footBall
Peyton NFL 2010 Salary $15,800,000

manning
golf (men) luke DonalD European Tour, 2010 tournament $5,867,601
PGA WinningS

Lowest-paying sport: women’s bowling. Highest-paying sports (tie): baseball and boxing.
golf (women)
na yeon Choi LPGA 2010 tournament
WinningS
$1,871,165

Gender breakdown: 32 men, 11 women. Total money earned: $238,536,500. Average amount
earned per athlete: $5,547,360. The results:
hockey (tie)
vinCent NHL 2010-11 Salary $10,000,000

leCavalier
roberto NHL 2010-11 Salary $10,000,000

luongo
TECHNICALLY SPEAKING
Sport Athlete league/tour Money Money horse racing
(jockey)
ramon a. N/A 2010 earningS
(not inDiviDual
$17,411,880

“Money” represents type

Dominguez Share)
official base salary or
earnings from the most auto racing

kimi World
Rally
2010 raCe WinningS,
PluS $12.7m from
$26,333,333 mma
broCk leSnar UFC eStimateD Prize
money, PPv Share
$5,300,000
recently completed raikkonen Championship SevereD f1 ContraCt
season or calendar year, Poker jonathan Various lanD-baSeD $9,443,519
and excludes endorse- tournament WinningS,
BaseBall alex MLB 2011 Salary $32,000,000 Duhamel aPril 4, 2010-
ments, appearance fees,
roDriguez aPril 3, 2011
sponsorship money and
other sources of extra
racquetBall
kane International
Racquetball Tour
irt 2010 event
earningS,
$300,000

income, unless otherwise

BasketBall kobe bryant NBA 2010-11 Salary $24,800,000 WaSelenChuk SPonSorShiPS,
aPPearanCe feeS
noted. Figures have been
converted to u.S. dollars
Beach
volleyBall
PhiliP FIVB 2010 Prize money $387,700 rodeo
trevor Professional
Rodeo Cowboys
2010 earningS $507,920

where applicable. For (men) DalhauSSer/ brazile Association

those sports not listed, toDD rogerS

official salary data
skiing (men)
iviCa koSteliC FIS World Cup
Alpine skiing events
2010-11 Prize money $464,440

were unavailable. Road- Beach

volleyBall
lariSSa FIVB 2010 Prize money $351,300

running data courtesy (women) franCa/ skiing

(women)
linDSey vonn FIS World Cup
Alpine skiing events
2010-11 Prize money $509,542

of Association of Road juliana

Racing Statisticians. feliSberta sled dog
racing
john baker Iditarod 2011 firSt-PlaCe
Prize money
$50,400

Da Silva
soccer
CriStiano La Liga 2010-11 Salary $19,500,000
Billiards
(men)
Darren N/A 2010 Prize money $118,494 ronalDo
aPPleton
squash
niCk mattheW Professional
Squash Association
2010 Prize money $166,926
Billiards
(women)
ga-young N/A 2010 Prize money $67,930

kim sumo
hakuho Japan Sumo
Association
2010 Salary $400,000

Bowling
(men)
Walter ray PBA 2009-10 Prize money $152,670 surfing (men)
kelly Slater ASP World Tour 2010 Prize money $516,000

WilliamS jr.
surfing
(women)
StePhanie ASP World Tour 2010 Prize money $140,700
Bowling
(women)
Shannon PBA 2009-10 Prize money $40,300 gilmore
PluhoWSky
The top-ranked bull in
tennis (men)
rafael naDal ATP 2010 Prize money $10,171,998

2010, Bushwacker, made Boxing

(n. american
manny N/A 2010 eStimateD
PurSe (tWo fightS)
$32,000,000
$350,000—or about $10
for each bump, bruise
fights) PaCquiao tennis
(women)
kim WTA 2010 Prize money $5,035,060

and battering he doled ClijSterS

out over 11 rides. Bull riding renato Professional
Bull Riders
2010 Prize money $1,594,527

nuneS triathlon
(men)
tim Don International
Triathlon Union
2010 Prize money $223,600

darts Phil Professional

Darts Corporation
2010 Prize money $1,044,000 triathlon
(women) emma International
Triathlon Union
2010 Prize money $239,800

taylor
SnoWSill

compiled By JoHn masTroBerardino 77

0502INTER3_lo.indd 77 4/16/11 3:44 AM

 All About the Money

-
uh
oh i'm
rich COMING INTO MONEY CHANGES PEOPLE.
BUT NOT AS MUCH AS IT CHANGES THE PEOPLE AROUND THEM.
ILLUSTRATIONS BY ANDY FRIEDMAN

AllYSoN FelIX SPRInTeR

“Recently I was on a radio show with

listeners calling in. A person gets on the
phone claiming to be a distant cousin through
some person I’d never heard of. eventually,
she hints that she needs help with a business idea and
anything I could do to help would be appreciated.
Afterward I talked to my mom about it, and she said,
‘um, no. this person does not exist.’
I have a lot of fake family these days.”

78

0502RICHXX_LO.indd 78 4/16/11 12:56 AM

 heAth
bell
PadReS

“I don’t have as much

trouble with gold-digging
women as other guys do,
but that’s because I’m
married and don’t have a
rock-hard body. It’s always funny
when women say things like,
‘ooooh, you look good.’ I don’t.
I’m the fat guy.”

eD “My favorite was a guy who hit me

SCott “I’ve had phone calls straight out of Boiler Room,
up recently on Facebook, asking with some random guy from Long Island calling
WANG for donations to a charity that GoMeZ and saying, ‘Scott, don’t play games,
BILLS I hadn’t
didn’t sound legit. CANADIENS
you have to give me this money now, this is a great
spoken to him since opportunity.’ And I didn’t know who it was or how he
elementary school, got my number. That’s why I leave all financial
and we weren’t close enough
then to play together at recess. Next thing I know, decisions to my money guy or my dad, who is an intimidating
he’s my good friend and wants money. He even presence. My money guy sends me examples of how athletes go
played the Christmas card: ‘During this holiday broke, and it’s effective. Since I was a kid, there have been two
season, I hope you think of this organization.’
things I’ve been afraid of: going to jail, and working. It’s all about
Oh, okay, I haven’t spoken to you in 15 years.
I’ll give you money.” freedom. And I need my money for that.”

ANthoNY tollIVeR “If all people are asking for is a little time, or an autograph, it’s no big thing. I know that something
small to me can be huge to somebody else. What I don’t understand are the requests I get from
TIMBERWOLVES guys I’ve never met. They won’t ask me for tickets; they’ll tell me I should be giving them a pair.
Or they’ll tell me I should ship them some team gear.
I’m like, ‘Do I even know you?’ ”

79

0502RICHXX_LO.indd 79 4/16/11 12:56 AM

 All About the Money

RYAN
loChte
SwIMMeR

“ever since I did well in the olympics

and signed with Gatorade and Speedo,
my family has been killing me! My little
brother will say, ‘hey, Ryan, have you
seen the new Rolex? Pretty nice, right?’
he won’t say, ‘Can I have money to get
DARIuS
this watch?’ he’ll just
beat around the bush.
butleR
but my dad is
the worst. PaTRIoTS
We’ll be in the bike shop,
and he’ll say, ‘I really like
this motorcycle. You can
see me on this, can’t “I once invested in a
you?’ I’m like, ‘Dad, come concert against the
on, I got you. Just ask!’ advice of my business
but then he’ll say, ‘oh, people. I put up
wow, look at that new $50,000 for a show
house,’ and I have to tell featuring big-name
him to take it easy.” artists, like Rick Ross,
Plies, Fabolous, trina
and Waka Flocka
Flame. they sold a lot
“I get a lot of ideas thrown my way. Some people will of tickets, but the
even come to the stadium or find me when I’m at organizers said they
home in Panama. One time, I was going to a CVS didn’t sell enough.
when some guy said, ‘I have this idea.’ I listened to
him; it doesn’t cost me anything to listen. In the end,
After that, I take their I got only
MARIANo business card, and $25,000 back.
RIVeRA then I pray about it. that was a tough
YANKEES Most of the time, I don’t do lesson about the impor-
anything else.” tance of saying no.”

80

0502RICHXX_LO.indd 80 4/16/11 12:56 AM

 “A few months ago
I got a note on
Facebook from an old SeahawkS
RAheeM bRoCK
high school sweet-
heart. I hadn’t spoken
to her in years, so I
thought I’d give her
a buzz. Catch up. I
called, and right away
she starts crying
and says that
I’m her soul-
ANDRe mate. then
beRto she saying
BOXER
she and her
son moved
from texas
to Florida to be
closer to me. I deal
with this all the time;
women who say on
the second date,
‘We have to
step this up to
the next level,’ “For a long time, it seemed like all my money went toward
or talk about moving feeding my friends. If I ate out, they were coming—and
in. It didn’t take me I was paying. So I got smart. Recently, 10 of my boys and I
long to recognize went to a fancy restaurant. When the $2,000 bill came,
what she was doing.
I said, ‘No thanks,
I snuck away and hid by the exit
to see what everyone would do. they started arguing: Who
baby. I’m all good.’ ”
brought their wallet? Who left it at home? Who doesn’t
have a job? Who ate more? they nearly started fighting.
but it worked. Now they
know: If we’re going out,
bring money.”
NFL DRAFT CONFIDENTIAL
WOULD YOU Consider this: Last year’s No. 1 pick, Sam Bradford, got six years and a
RATHER REP THE guaranteed 50 mil from the Rams; the No. 1 UFA, Julius Peppers, got six and
TOP DRAFT PICK 42 mil from the Bears. So, no surprise, some choose the draft pick, saying not
OR THE TOP even the prospect of a rookie cap can overshadow the chance to have the top
UNRESTRICTED prospect for, potentially, a decade. Still, a wide majority (84.6%) would go with RePoRtING bY SAM AlIPouR, lINDSAY beRRA,
FREE AGENT? the top free agent. “With the No. 1 pick, you have one team to deal with and a PAtRICK CAIN, louISe CoRNettA, SeAN eVANS,
Download scanner at
pattern to follow,” one agent says. “With a free agent, there are 32 teams to http://gettag.mobi
negotiate with.” (see page 8 for details) tIM StRubY AND Seth WICKeRShAM

81

0502RICHXX_LO.indd 81 4/16/11 12:56 AM

0502SCAM_lo.indd 82 4/15/11 12:38 AM
 HOW TO

AN
ATHLETE IN

UNEASY
STEPS
SO YOU WANT TO MAKE MONEY IN SPORTS BUT DON’T HAVE ANY
BALL SKILLS? YOU CAN ALWAYS TRY TO DO WHAT COREY JENKINS’ AGENTS
DID. JUST BE PREPARED TO RUIN SOME LIVES ALONG THE WAY.

BY PETER KEATING
PHOTOGRAPHS BY GREG MILLER

83

0502SCAM_lo.indd 83 4/15/11 12:38 AM

 All About the Money

Trouble began
almost as soon as
Jenkins left home
for baseball
glory. He’s only
now back in
control of his life.

IT WAS THE KIND of SWElTErINg ColumbIA, S.C., DAy CorEy JENKINS Step 1

usually spent bringing folks to their feet, legging out a double or snaring a line Choose Your Mark earlY
The younger the target, the more likely he is to be
drive. but on this afternoon, June 1, 1995, the 18-year-old star was earning an vulnerable. (Plus, you have longer to bilk him!)
ovation at Dreher High’s graduation. After the ceremony, as he made his way James Brown and Marion Darnell Jones first
through the throng in the Carolina Coliseum, Corey saw James brown, one laid eyes on Jenkins in the spring of 1993, at
Capital City Stadium in Columbia. They were a
of his agents. “The red Sox took you in the first round,” brown said. The
pair of locals just figuring out how to be sports
good news for Jenkins was better news for brown. He and Darnell Jones, his agents and trawl for talent. Jenkins was in the
partner at Summit management, had big plans for Corey and his cash. stands to watch his older brother, Dee, a fleet
second base prospect in the Reds’ system. The
Wait. Stop. Excuse us as we stand on the brakes stress within two years of retirement, and 60% of buzz around town was that Corey was going to
and screech to a halt. We’re not going to tell one NBA players were bankrupt within five. In 2002, be even better than Dee—just as fast but bigger
more story about how quickly and horribly U.S. News & World Report reported that 78 NFL and stronger. When Brown and Jones spotted the
things can go wrong for a young athlete. We players had been defrauded of a combined kid, they called up to him and his mother, Rachael.
could, of course: Jenkins is still putting his life $42 million over the previous three years. “We’ll keep in touch,” they said.
back together, nearly 20 years after he first met Maybe if the NCAA or professional unions Corey exploded into multisport superstardom
Brown and Jones. But you already know athletes made financial education a top priority, maybe if at Dreher. As a senior, he was an all-state QB and
get scammed all the time. Michael Vick was the Federal Trade Commission punished even hit .403 with 21 RBIs in only 62 at-bats. He was 18,
duped while he was facing dogfighting charges one agent, maybe if we all didn’t chalk up athlete 6'2" and 200 pounds, and he ran a 4.5 40. Rachael,
and again while he was in Leavenworth. Scottie busts to human nature; maybe then the stories a single mom, raised Dee, Corey and their sister,
Pippen just held a giant yard sale after losing would be different or at least less frequent. But as Kelly, on an administrative assistant’s salary in
much of his $100 million in career earnings to bad things stand, here’s what all the swindling has the same Bluff Road trailer park where she had
investments. John Elway sank $15 million into a taught us: You don’t have to be physically gifted been raised as one of 12. When Rachael’s kids
hedge-fund Ponzi scheme. to make a pile of cash in sports. You just have to didn’t listen, she was so hard on them Corey
A full rogues’ gallery of shady agents and find someone who is—and rip him off. called her Warden. But Corey mostly flashed the
financial advisers have populated sports pages So we return to Jenkins, Summit Management qualities you would want in a son—promising
over the years: Luigi DiFonzo, Marc Dreier, Robert and, quite possibly, the biggest financial fraud talent, relentless determination, lifelong respect-
Allen Stanford, Triton Financial, Kirk Wright. you’ve never heard of, to show you how scams fulness and a hunger for approval. Those same
And the big picture never seems to change: In like these work over and over again. And we’ll qualities also made the kid a perfect mark for
2009, Sports Illustrated found 78% of NFLers show you in 10 easy steps. Just please don’t ever Brown and Jones. “Lo and behold, they did show
were either bankrupt or under severe financial try this at home. back up,” Jenkins says.

84

0502SCAM_lo.indd 84 4/15/11 12:38 AM

 Step 2
hone Your PitCh, then ProMise
the World
Establish a common bond with your mark. If he
thinks he knows you, he’s less likely to feel the
need to know every detail of your plans for him.
When Brown and Jones first partnered in 1993,
it was to dabble in real estate. Before long, though,
they had moved into sports management. It was
a world they knew. Brown, who was 45, had
played hoops at Benedict College in Columbia,
and Jones, 14 years younger, played the same
game at South Carolina–Aiken. Both were confi-
dent they could present themselves as the right
men to take care of local athletes.
In October 1993, Brown and Jones launched
Summit Management, selling it as a financial
services company, with accountants, lawyers and
clockWiSe from lefT: imago/icon Smi; Tom DiPace; miTcHell layTon/geTTy imageS
NFL AGENT CONFIDENTIAL
DO YOU HAVe A Most agents (65.4%) say they made it through law school, but even graduates
LAW DeGRee? admit a diploma isn’t worth the frame it’s hung in. “We do not write contracts—
we negotiate contracts,” one longtime agent says. “We fill in the blanks of an
existing legal document.” in fact, seven of the 17 who answer yes say that
when an attorney is called for, they hire outside counsel rather than do the
work themselves.
Download scanner at
http://gettag.mobi
(see page 8 for details)
had. They always had time to listen, made you feel churches. Summit quickly built a strong roster
like family. They promised Corey’s bills would be that included Reggie Taylor of Newberry
paid, his mom’s too, and offered spending cash. (drafted by the Phillies in 1995); Stephen Davis
On May 12, 1995, Jenkins signed a three-page of Spartanburg (Auburn, then the Redskins,
personal-services deal Brown had boiled down 1996); Gookie Dawkins of Newberry (Reds, 1997);
from standard athlete representation packages. Victor Riley of Swansea (Auburn, then the
The deal gave Summit 10% of Jenkins’ contracts Chiefs, 1998); and Preston Wilson of Bamberg (a
and investment profits, 15% of endorsements. Mets minor leaguer).
While these athletes were still in high school,

portfolio managers, all working to place clients in
quality, conservative investments. The two
African-American men, driving Lexuses and
wearing elegant suits and monogrammed shirts,
targeted local black athletes, mostly high school-
ers, nearly all from low-income homes. “They
played the race card.” says Ron Grosse, the FBI
agent who would investigate Summit.
Brown and Jones started to attend Corey’s
games during his senior year, and as the young
star got to know them he became convinced
that they cared about the right things. Brown
explained how they were unlike those LA agen-
cies run by big-shot white guys. Jones talked
about giving his own children everything he never
Step 3
Gain total Control
The crucial moment in any scam comes when the
victim trusts you so thoroughly he’s willing to let
you act on his behalf. You do that with power of
attorney, a legal document that authorizes you to
make someone else’s financial decisions.
Jenkins gave the Summit partners his power
of attorney soon after the Red Sox selected
him. He’d dreamed forever about playing big-
time football at USC’s Williams-Brice Stadium,
where he once sold peanuts as much to watch
the games as for the cash. But Brown and
James advised him to first see how much they
could get from a major league club. When
Boston offered a signing
Summit lent them luxury cars, showered them
with Air Jordans and track suits, and dropped off
goodies in bundles that said, “Welcome to the
family.” Once they signed, Summit bought them
cars of their own, set them up in apartments and
gave them as much cash as they wanted, when-
ever they asked for it.
Jenkins used his money to buy Rachael a three-
bedroom brick house on a cul-de-sac. Warden
wouldn’t be running a prison anymore. She’d
been enjoying her in-ground pool instead.
Corey says he thought: My mom’s in the house she
wanted. She’s got a Camry, and I’ve got a truck.
What else do we need?
Step 5

bonus of $575,000, Jenkins shoW soMe heart ...

jumped at the shot to give
Rachael all she deserved,
even as he prepared to
untie the apron strings. “I
wanted to get out, get away
and go play,” he says.
Summit duped So he took the money. Or
a roster of more precisely, Summit did;
stars, including
his bonus went right to
(clockwise from
left) Jenkins, Brown and Jones, as did his
Preston Wilson bank statements and all
and Stephen
other financial documents.
Davis.
Step 4
netWork like CrazY
Few major frauds milk just
one cash cow. To succeed in
scamming, you need new
victims to provide the funds
to pay old victims before
their suspicions surface.
Brown and Jones were
masters of using clients’ fam-
ilies to connect with future
marks. Through schools and
Perpetrating a monstrous rip-off doesn’t make
you a monster. At least that’s what you need to
keep telling yourself.
If scammers ever stopped to think about the
inhumanity of their actions, they might end
up offing themselves, like DiFonzo, who flim-
flammed athletes such as Eric Dickerson into
believing he was an Italian count before his
investing schemes collapsed in 2000, and Wright,
who was convicted on 47 counts of fraud and
money laundering involving former NFL players
in 2008. Seeding schemes with acts of kindness
not only helps avoid the occupational hazard of
suicide—it also builds more trust among victims.
Summit offered many of its athletes their first
lessons in the rituals of successful businessmen.
Brown and Jones dined clients at the Capital
Club, which sits atop Columbia’s Affinity build-
ing, home as well to Summit’s offices. They took
them shopping for handmade suits at Granger
Owings Classic Clothiers and to strip clubs with
names like Platinum Plus, where Brown and
Jones dropped fistfuls of dollars. “We worked out
together, we hung out together,” Jenkins says.
“Stephen Davis, Preston Wilson and I lived in the

85

0502SCAM_lo.indd 85 4/15/11 12:38 AM

 All About the Money
same house. We met through James and Darnell,
and we became like brothers. We were growing
up and making it at the same time.”
And when Jenkins didn’t make it, Summit was
there for him, too. On the road for the first time,
Jenkins suddenly felt very young and very alone,
hitting .145 in rookie ball, .224 the following sea-
son. When he got down, he called Brown or Jones.
The men were more than agents. They were his
support, the ones who made him go on.
Step 6
... But Show No Mercy
You scam to get rich. And nobody ever got rich
leaving a dollar behind for sentimental reasons.
Though the pep talks and family dinners con-
tinued, Brown and Jones had already bled
Jenkins dry. The Red Sox paid Jenkins $288,000,
the first installment of his bonus, in August 1995.
Brown and Jones immediately started moving
chunks of it around, some to their own accounts,
some to cover shortfalls in others they had
drained earlier. Jenkins’ cash was gone within
two months, according to an investigator who
has seen Summit’s bank records. Jenkins got the
rest of his bonus, $287,000, in March 1996. It was
gone three months later. The Summit partners
even grabbed a $1,500 payment Topps sent in case
it ever printed Jenkins’ baseball card.
Meanwhile, Jenkins slogged through towns
like Lowell and Battle Creek and Sarasota, oblivi-
ous to the violation. It’s the dark beauty of the
scam: Who would suspect that those hired to
keep crooks away could be crooks themselves?
The money for the cars and apartments, the
clothes and nude girls—it all came from other cli-
ents. Brown and Jones had no accountants work-
ing on behalf of Jenkins or any athlete. They
were running a pyramid scheme, furiously shuf-
fling money as they gorged themselves and
scrambled for the next big score.
Step 7
wheN the GoiNG GetS touGh,
DouBle DowN
If your scam is successful, you’re going to have to
grow your network of targets beyond anything
you imagined. And that ratchets up the hustle.
After a USAir flight crashed on its way from
Columbia to Charlotte, N.C., Jones tracked down
a child whose father had died onboard and con-
vinced the boy’s mother to let Summit manage
his settlement. From March 1997 to March 1998,
Brown and Jones siphoned more than $90,000
from that account. They also got hundreds of
thousands in loans from a local accountant, a
lawyer in their building, a former president of the
Columbia Chamber of Commerce, even a 75-year-
old benefactor of a local black college.
Brown and Jones reinvested some of that cash
86
0502SCAM_lo.indd 86
into keeping athletes happy, like spending nearly
$14,000 on clothes and shoes for Charles Woodson,
who would become their first major non-South
Carolina client, while he was a junior at Michigan.
But they also amped up their already insane per-
sonal burn rate: alligator shoes, belts and wallets
for Brown; trips to Atlantic City and stays at the
$655-a-night Pierre hotel in New York City for
Jones. Despite the growing parade of victims, the
agents couldn’t quite keep their accounts filled
enough to stay out of trouble.
In August 1998, with Jenkins in a make-or-
break season, Rachael received foreclosure
papers; she owed more than $8,000 on her home.
Jones blamed an accounting error. In January
1999, Corey’s Ford Expedition was repossessed.
Brown and Jones assured him it was a mistake
and got the car back. Still, Rachael told Summit to
open its books. So Brown came to the Jenkins
house, and, looking glum, handed Corey four
pages on Summit letterhead. They were financial
summaries showing dozens of transfers to
Rachael. “Your mom’s been spending your money,”
the agent said. “It’s all lies!” Rachael screamed.
Corey was stunned. It wasn’t until he called his
mother to demand an explanation weeks later
that the truth hit him. He heard the absurdity of
Brown’s claims in his own accusatory tone. His
mother wouldn’t, couldn’t, lie to him.
The reality, though, was worse than either of
them could have imagined. Not only did Summit
miss payments on Jenkins’ car, it also refinanced
his loan at the Richland Teachers Council Federal
Credit Union, whose president, Andre Lewis,
helped Brown and Jones launder cash through
bogus credit lines. Summit didn’t just squander
clients’ cash. It destroyed their credit, too.
Step 8
wheN the GoiNG GetS really
touGh, Split
Most scams crash sooner or later, so you need an
exit strategy. But that may be no more compli-
Jenkins returned to South Carolina for
his degree, but he was too late to save
the house he’d bought for his mom.
cated than closing up shop. Victims
will have a hard time finding you,
so it may be years before anyone
brings charges.
Hammers began to fall on the
Jenkins family in 1999, the year Corey
gave up baseball. In April, Rachael’s
Camry was repossessed. After Jones
told her he couldn’t recover it,
neither he nor Brown ever returned
any of her calls. They abandoned
their offices. The Jenkinses were
served again with foreclosure papers
in June; this time, they lost the house.
As a final gut punch, Corey was
informed he owed more than $40,000
in back taxes, interest and penalties.
When Davis, by then the centerpiece of the
Redskins backfield, got a similar notice, he walked
into the Washington, D.C., offices of the FBI to
report the problems he was having with Summit.
Before long, a grand jury was looking into the
firm and the Richland Credit Union. Adding to
the tangle: On June 25, 1999, Zhavonne Davis,
Summit’s bookkeeper, who had voiced concerns
about cocaine use at the company, was shot
dead at a friend’s home as he watched the
4/15/11 3:25 PM
 All About the Money

NBA playoffs. Police found his

body in a closet. His murder While Jenkins
remains unsolved. was trying to
salvage his
The FBI never considered football career,
Brown or Jones a fugitive, but Jones and
they were no longer easy men to brown were
being sen-
find. In July 1999, the Jenkinses tenced for
hired a lawyer and sued Summit, defrauding
but it was months before Brown athletes.

was served with the complaint.

More than once, Corey went out
looking for the agents, hoping to
beat out of them whatever satis-
faction he could. Just as often, pay $1,817,537.50 in restitution. His minimum
he parked outside the house monthly $250 payments would make him square
Rachael lost, blaming himself in the year 2609. No wonder Agent Grosse still
for her now having to live in a gets calls from Summit’s victims, asking if he can
two-bedroom apartment with vouch for them as they try to buy a house or car.
her daughter and grandkids, her Jenkins wasted no time rebuilding his life. He
belongings in a storage shed. started nine games at QB for South Carolina in
In January 2001, a state judge 2002, but then Holtz shifted him to defense where
awarded the Jenkinses $440,000 he’d have a better shot at the NFL. It worked: He
in their suit against Summit and was drafted as a linebacker by the Dolphins in
both founding partners. They 2003. But his chance to be an impact player was
haven’t seen a penny. “Where’s long gone. Jenkins played for two years with the
Corey’s money?” Rachael said. Dolphins and Bears, went to camp with the
“Up noses, designer clothes, expensive cars. he had sold peanuts so many years earlier. Panthers in 2006, spent 2007 in the CFL and was
Anyway, it’s gone.” Before one team meeting during Jenkins’ the last cut of the Montreal Alouettes in 2008.
senior year, coach Lou Holtz let him know a visit- Back home, Jenkins coached a Pop Warner
Step 9 ing expert was coming in to brief the players on team with Davis, also in Columbia after his NFL
do Your tiMe, and do soMethinG financial fraud. When Jenkins walked into the career ended. He worked in a dropout prevention
for the kids locker room, he saw FBI agents sitting up front— program and took 21 credits over nine months to
If you’re planning to steal more money than you and the expert, James Brown. Jenkins turned and finish his own degree. Last December, he gradu-
can stuff into your pockets, prepare for the day left the room, boiling in anger. Eventually, he ated from USC, and in July, he’ll take over as
the law catches up with you. Contemplate your went back in. Looking at Brown, who was meet- defensive coordinator at nearby Gray Military
bargaining options. In particular, be ready to ing the conditions of his plea bargain, he saw Academy. Again and again, he tells whoever will
throw your partners under the bus. ghosts in the man’s eyes. listen: “It’s never too late to go back.”
In 2001, a federal grand jury indicted Brown and After the disgraced agent addressed the team, Thing is, that’s equally true for the scam artist.
Jones on 56 counts of fraud and money launder- he told Jenkins, “I’d like to talk with you when I Last year, South Carolina issued a cease and
ing. Brown soon cut a deal with the U.S. attorney’s have the chance.” Corey never saw him again. desist order against James Brown, who had been
office and was sentenced to 21 months in prison luring investors into misleading and risky real
in November 2002. Jones cut his own deal in Step 10 estate deals run by a company called Ace
October 2002 and would receive 41 months. start all over aGain Development. (Calls from The Mag to Brown’s
Jenkins gave football another go, starring at We call America the land of opportunity because last known number went unanswered.) Darnell
Garden City Community College in Kansas it’s a place for new beginnings. Move to a different Jones got out of prison in November 2006 and
before returning to South Carolina. He became state, shed your debts in bankruptcy, change your went on probation. Over the next three years he
the Gamecocks starting quarterback at age 26, name and you’re back in business. Just don’t look failed to pay child support, opened a $45,000 cred-
and on the last night of August in 2002, he led the back at the wreckage behind you. it line without telling his probation officer and
team through the tunnel of the stadium where As part of his sentence, Jones was ordered to never got a steady job, yet the probation was al-
lowed to expire, in December 2009.
In September 2010, Jones (who declined to com-
ment) applied to patent a “System of Fractional
NFL AGENT CONFIDENTIAL Ownership of Intellectual Property,” basically a
way for investors to buy shares in celebrities
WHAt peRCeNt- With the agreed standard at 3%, the overall average ends up right around
ToP rigHT: Jeff blake/PolariS

AGe OF pLAYeR there: 2.98%. But then we were let in on a secret. “nobody mentions this and athletes. “When a Fractional Owner uses
SALARIeS DO YOU publicly,” says a 10-year industry vet. “But the bigger the client, the more we’re his credit line to purchase a perk of fractional
ReCeIVe? willing to chop off that rate. it’s kind of a joke that we don’t get pushed more
to drop our number.” When asked the same question about endorseMent ownership, the corresponding funds in the
deals, the average is 15.5%. pooling account can be reallocated to the IP
SCAN HERE FOR A
BONUS QUESTION!
(see page 8 for details) entity,” the application reads.
Which sounds a lot like going back to Step 1. Ω

88

0502SCAM_lo.indd 88 4/15/11 12:38 AM

 All About the Money

theY oWN CArS AND DogS,

rINgS AND 401KS. theY oWe bANKS AND
the IrS, ex-WIVeS AND the
TOP athletes MAYor oF DetroIt. theY Are ...

whohave filed for

b a nkr uptcy
ANge Loose ChANge Loose ChANge Loose ChANge Loose ChANge Loose ChANge Loose ChANge Loose ChANge Loose ChANge Loose ChANge Loose ChANge Loose ChANge Loose ChANge Loose C

since 2000
The athletes: 5 NFl players, 4 NbA players, 1 boxer, 1 WNbA player, 1 Nhl player, 1 Mlb player. Estimated total career earnings: $895.9 million and
counting. Chapter breakdown: Chapter 11, 6 initial filings; Chapter 7, 6 initial filings; Chapter 13, 1 initial filing. The results:

TECHNICALLY SPEAKING Player league Career Initial Player league Career Initial Player league Career Initial
(Years Salary Filing (Year (Years Salary Filing (Year (Years Salary Filing (Year
our bankruptcy figures Played) earned Filed) Played) earned Filed) Played) earned Filed)
and information are
culled from public
information and official Kenny Anderson NBA $63.4M Chapter 7 All-star and current Detroit mayor $50K Palms Casino $60K, MotorCity Casino $25K, DIRECTV $537
1991-2005 2005 Status: oNgoINg Status: REsolVED
court filings. In a
Chapter 7 filing, the Sample assets: Cash $1K, NBA memorabilia $2K, men’s
clothing $2K, men’s jewelry/accessories $500, NBA 401K
debtor asks the court to plan $85K, Cadillac Escalade $25K Sheryl Swoopes WNBA N/A Chapter 13
In April, Dykstra was charged with bankruptcy fraud for alleg- 1997-2008, 2004
wipe out (“discharge”) Sample creditors: lexus $10.9K, taxes $69K, ex-wives 2011
edly hiding, selling or destroying property worth more than
most types of debt, and $137K, DIRECTV $96, Home Depot charge card $27K, $400,000 from his $18.5 million house in Ventura County.
Sample assets: Not listed
the debtors’ assets are Macy’s $2.4K, NBA 401K—borrowed against $50K
sold off. In a Chapter 13 Status: REsolVED Sample creditors: Chase Home Finance $419K,
filing, the debtor works lenny Dykstra MLB $36M Chapter 11 IRs $275K
1985-96 2009
Status: REsolVED
with the court on a Charlie batch NFL $15M Chapter 7 Sample assets: Two homes in California $23.9M, gym
payment plan with 1998-present since 2000 2010
equipment $10K, german shepherd $10K, artwork/
creditors, with the Sample assets: Three houses $273K, cash/bank jewelry/antiques/memorabilia $120K Mike tyson Boxing $400M Chapter 11
1985-2005 2003
possibility that some accounts $1.9K, two glock handguns unknown, NFl 401K Sample creditors: Countrywide/Bank of America $4M,
liabilities will be reduced $416K, two suzuki ATVs $3K, Kawasaki Personal Rockbridge Bank $3.5M, Washington Mutual $12.9M, Sample assets not itemized on filing: residential real
or discharged. Chapter 11 Watercraft $2.5K, Doral Elegante Dual Inboard/outboard BMW $105K, Classic Interiors $210K, Matt Walker, estate; pending litigation against Don King and affiliated
Mercruiser $61K sherdog MMA Forums $85K, Mercedes Benz $367K, entities and showtime; former residences in las Vegas;
is much like Chapter 13 cars and other property
Sample creditors: American Home Mortgage $103K, Porsche $53K
but is reserved for PNC Bank $1.88M, Dollar Bank $2.76M, Status: REsolVED Sample creditors: IRs $13.4M, U.K. taxes $4M,
corporations, or for Harley-Davidson $7K Jewelers, Inc. $174K, Darius Rugs $78K, Ferrari of Beverly
individuals in cases Status: oNgoINg Hills $60.6K
involving large sums luther elliss* NFL $11.6M Chapter 7 Status: oNgoINg
1995-2004 2000-04 2009
of money.
Mark brunell NFL $52M Chapter 11 Sample assets: Wife’s jewelry $11.9K, men’s jewelry
1993-present since 2000 2010
$540, camera/camcorder $100, two bikes $30, NFl Michael Vick NFL $68.8M Chapter 11
2001-06, 2008
Sample assets: Home in Ponte Vedra, Fla. $3.1M, pension $347K, dog $10 2009-present
NFl 401K $628K, two watches/1991 national Sample creditors: state/local taxes $37.6K, Blackburne
championship ring/three Rose Bowl rings/2010 & Brown Mortgage Co. $363K, Washington Mutual $3.2M, Sample assets: sugarloaf Country Club (Atlanta)
super Bowl ring $15.5K AAA Auto Club $2.5K, Comcast cable $351 mansion $4.1M, 2007 land Rover $75K, 2007 land Rover
$62K, 2007 Cadillac Escalade $51K, 2008 Mercedes Benz
Sample creditors: National Retail Properties lP $5.5M, Status: REsolVED $80K, 2007 Ford F-150 $25K, 2007 Infinity truck $65K,
sCBT $3.43M, American Bank $2.66M, CNl Bank $2.64M,
2006 Cadillac DTs $31K, 2008 Ford F-450 $40K,
Independent Bank of Western Michigan $2.15M
Chevrolet Impala $24K
Status: oNgoINg bernie Kosar NFL N/A Chapter 11
1985-96 2009 Sample creditors: Atlanta Falcons $3.75M, Royal Bank of
Canada $2.5M, Joel Enterprises $4.5M
Sample assets: super Bowl ring $12K, NFl 1987 MVP
Jason Caffey NBA $34.1M Chapter 11 trophy $10K, land in ohio $5M+, 2007 Chevy Tahoe $26K, Status: oNgoINg
1995-2003 2007
2009 Kia Rio $15K
Sample assets: Two NBA championship rings $10K, Sample creditors: Florida Bank $9.7M, Cleveland Browns Antoine Walker NBA $108.1M Chapter 7
clothing $500, Jason A. Caffey, llC $600K, 1967 Buick $1.5M, ex-wife Babette Kosar $3M+ 1996-2008 2010
Wildcat $14K, 2006 Dodge Charger $34K
Status: oNgoINg Sample assets: Real estate $4.1M, household furnishings
Sample creditors: Child support $275K, Chrysler
$19K, watch $20K, 2006 NBA championship ring $6K, two
Financial $21K, Countrywide $624K
Range Rovers $111K
Status: FIlINg DIsMIssED Darren McCarty NhL $15.5M Chapter 7
1993-2009 2005 Sample creditors: land Rover $71K, Ameristar Casino
$500K, Harrah’s Entertainment $770K, Pier 1 Imports
Sample assets: Jewelry $5.6K, two Harley-Davidson $1.5K, Centrust Bank $1M, City of Chicago $1M
Derrick Coleman NBA $91.4M Chapter 7 motorcycles $16K, golf clubs $500, home in Farmington
1990-2005 2010 Status: oNgoINg
Hills, Mich. $592K
Sample assets: 1957 Buick convertible $20K, Sample creditors: DMA Holdings $2M, Bellagio $100K,
1970 Chevrolet Nova $5K, 1997 Bentley convertible $50K *Filed with wife, Rebecca Elliss.

Sample creditors: Comerica Bank $1.3M, Thornburg

Mortgage Home loans $1M, Dave Bing, former Pistons

CompIleD by DAle brAuner

89

0502INTER4_lo.indd 89 4/16/11 1:19 AM

 Jason Mercier (black shirt)
has backed Dan O’Brien (red)
and Allen Bari for several
years. He’s still waiting for
a return on his investment.

0502OPMXXX_lo.indd 94 4/15/11 6:50 PM

 ALL IN(AND VERY LITTLE BACK OUT)
FORGET BAD BEATS AND BLUFFS: ONE OF THE BIGGEST MISTAKES POKER
PLAYERS CAN MAKE IS BETTING ON OTHER POKER PLAYERS.

BY TIM STRUBY PHOTOGRAPHS BY jEFF MERMELSTEIN 95

0502OPMXXX_lo.indd 95 4/15/11 6:50 PM

 All About the Money

Palace Las Vegas, they reconnected and O’Brien

introduced Mercier to his buddy, Bari. Mercier
asked O’Brien, 26, if he was going to play in an
upcoming $10,000 tournament. No, the Long

F
Island native replied, because the buy-in was too
pricey. “He’d gotten third in a World Series event
in June,” Mercier says. “And from our conversa-
tions about poker I knew he knew what he was
talking about. So I offered to put him in the $10K
event.” Without Mercier’s having seen O’Brien
play a single hand, a backing deal was born.
A year later, after a similar conversation, Mercier
started footing entry fees for Bari, 26.
While the terms of backing deals are as diverse
as a Pinkberry counter—single tournament
versus multiple events is just one variable—
ive minutes before at the Atlantis Paradise Island, Bahamas. “But at Mercier and his horses settled upon a 50-50 split
the start of the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure an event like this, I’d say around 40% of the “with makeup,” a common arrangement that
main event, poker pros Allen Bari and Dan players are staked.” calls for the horse to start getting a share of his
O’Brien meet with fellow pro Jason Mercier. The And if 40% of poker pros, some of the best winnings only after all the entry fees and buy-
three friends say their hellos, then Mercier, as number crunchers on the planet, are betting on ins are recouped. After defining the terms, the
nonchalant as if he were buying a round of beers, other poker pros, you’d think staking must be two did what poker pros have been doing for
gives Bari and O’Brien each $10,000, the buy- good business practice. decades after making a deal: nothing. No lawyers.
in for the tourney. Ordinarily, when Mercier gives You’d be wrong. No paperwork. “Gamblers aren’t like Wall Street
them a large scale buy-in, some-
thing he’s done dozens of times,
it’s in stacked 100-dollar bills or
two $5,000 chips. Today, though,
he hands each a white, palm-
size ticket with a face value of
10 G’s. During the exchange, the
24-year-old Mercier, ESPN’s
No. 3-ranked player, who has
made nearly $5.2 million in 32
months as a pro, offers no words
of encouragement. He also
doesn’t ask when he’ll be repaid.
Despite the combined $300,000
that O’Brien and Bari owe
Mercier, none of them seems
concerned about settling up.
These types of big-money
exchanges are regular occur-
rences before poker tourna-
ments. In this world’s vernacu-
lar, Mercier “backs” or “stakes” The life of a touring pro: Share
Bari and O’Brien. For the past a room, divvy up the cash and,
oftentimes, return empty-handed.
few years, the three have had an arrangement.
Mercier pays all their tourney buy-ins (both
online and live). In return, O’Brien and Bari,
two of Mercier’s “horses,” share with him all of
their winnings.
To pro gamblers, the practice has become Horses AnD bACKers find each other in a scum,” says Daniel Negreanu, poker’s all-time
as common as a three-bet. According to a variety of ways. Some post ads on Twitter, or on No. 2 biggest tournament earner. “We’re respect-
PokerStars survey of 56 of the online-poker com- sites like twoplustwo.com, parttimepoker.com able people. They need contracts; we just need
pany’s sponsored pros, 52 said that at some point and pocketfives.com. Sometimes the two are our word.”
they had either backed a player or been backed simply old friends. Or, as is often the case, they Then again, successful pro poker players make
themselves. “There’s no way to tell the numbers meet at a tournament. Mercier talked with suitcases full of money. Why would they want or
for certain,” says Eric Baldwin, the 2009 Card O’Brien at a lunch break during the 2008 World need to be staked in the first place? In truth, tal-
Player Player of the Year, who’s also playing here Series of Poker. A few months later, at Caesars ented pros have many excuses to seek backing.

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0502OPMXXX_lo.indd 96 4/15/11 6:50 PM

 One common reason is leaks. Plenty of good
players have had cash shortages after too
many drugs, craps or NFL over-under bets.
The lifestyle doesn’t help either; gamblers are
notorious spendthrifts. But ask most players,
including Bari and O’Brien, and they say they
seek backing because of variance, the statistical
term used to describe the deviation in results
over time. Or, as laymen refer to it, luck. Good
poker players finish in the money in about
17% of tournaments they enter. But poker is a
streaky sport, and even elite pros don’t necessar-
ily cash once every seven events. They might go
0-for-14 over the course of a few months, then
make three final tables in their next seven tour-
naments. Before the 2003 poker boom, players
could more easily weather an 0-for-21 storm. In
2000, for example, the WSOP featured 25 events
with only four $5,000 buy-ins and one $10,000.
An entire year of buy-ins back then ran $25,000
to $50,000.
But in today’s poker world, the cost of playing
poker has shot up. Last year, the WSOP had 57
events, including six $5,000 buy-ins, 10 $10,000s,
one $25,000 and a $50,000. All told, one year of
buy-ins now can run upwards of $500,000, and
that doesn’t factor in flights, hotel rooms and
pricey casino food and drink, tabs that backers
don’t typically pick up. “It’s easy to shell out
0502OPMXXX_lo.indd 97
NFL AGENT CONFIDENTIAL
ON AVERAGE, In the last issue of The Mag, likely draftees figured they were lent, on average,
HOW MUCH $23,110, and agents give a similar estimate ($26,115). But while players said
MONEY DO the loans were a necessary outlay for training and travel, agents see it
YOU FRONT differently. “It’s the riskiest money we put out,” says one agent. “You never
A POTENTIAL know if a guy’s going to plummet three rounds and lose millions or even if a
PICK BEFORE first-rounder will be around in three years.”
Scan here for a
THE DRAFT? bonuS queStion!
(see page 8 for details)
$300,000 to $400,000 without a significant enter the 1997 WSOP main event, then shared
score,” says 2005 World Poker Tour champ Gavin the $1 million prize when Ungar won. Lindgren
Smith, who’s been backed by fellow pro Erick pocketed a nice chunk of a Josh Arieh $2.5 million
Lindgren since 2004. “That’s too much money payday in 2004. And there’s always the legend
for me to have out there at one time.” of “Bax and Sheets,” the secretive staking duo of
But Mercier saw Bari, O’Brien Cliff “JohnnyBax” Josephy and Eric “Sheets”
and other potential horses as an Haber, who supposedly rake in money every
investment. In April 2008, he won year with a stable of 30 to 100 horses (both Bax
and Sheets, pros themselves, declined to be
interviewed for this story). Poker players like to
better their odds, so it stands to reason that if
Mercier has 10 horses plus himself in a tourney,
he’s got 11 chances to make a final table.
That’s the glittery lettering on the front of
poker’s version of a lottery ticket. The reality
is, backing rarely pans out. If Mercier had 11
chances to cash in the same tournament, he also
has guaranteed lots of chances to bust. Both
O’Brien and Bari had early spurts of success for
him. During one stretch in 2008, O’Brien grossed
more than $100,000. Bari had a brief tear last
spring, pulling in almost $300,000 over six weeks.
But neither has shown consistent returns, and
since June both horses have come up lame. As of
early April, after several years of being staked by
their backer, O’Brien had cost Mercier a total of
$200,000, and Bari was down another $100,000.
“It’s been insane,” says O’Brien. “Since March
2010, I’ve cashed only a handful of times in over
60 events.”
MOST POKER For all of his investment woes, Mercier seems
PLAYERS SEEK relaxed. He’s certainly not worried about going
broke. Despite backing six horses (only one of
BACKING BECAUSE
whom turns a profit, but “not much”), the Florida
OF VARIANCE, A TERM native continues to rake it in himself and has a
USED TO DEFINE lucrative PokerStars sponsorship. He isn’t mad,
THE VARIATION IN either. If his arrangement with Bari and O’Brien
RESULTS OVER TIME. ended tomorrow—backers can end deals when
OR, AS LAYMEN they choose, while horses can end a deal only
when they’re in the black—Mercier insists that
CALL IT, LUCK.
the three would remain friends. But Mercier is
frustrated. As he preps to enter himself into the
PCA, he laments how his players never seem to
get the right hand in the right spot. “My horses
may not be the best players in the world,” he
$1.37 million at the San Remo European Poker says. “But they can’t be as bad as their results
Tour event, only the second live tournament he’d have been.”
ever entered. “I’d heard staking was lucrative if Last year, Mercier discovered he had plenty
you just find some good players,” he says. And of company in the red. At the WSOP Europe, the
what touring pro hasn’t heard stories of staking subject of staking arose during one hand. When
lore? Billy Baxter paid $10,000 for Stu Ungar to a player asked if anyone had backed others,
97
4/15/11 6:50 PM
 All About the Money
eight of nine people at the table raised their
hands. Had anybody won? None of the eight
raised their hands. Was it a good experience?
Everyone laughed.
According to many backers, the hassles aren’t
worth the investment. Negreanu may scoff at
Wall Street scum, but later he says: “Would I
recommend backing? Absolutely not.”
Perhaps not surprisingly, poker players aren’t
all sure-thing investments. Jamie Gold, the 2006
WSOP Main Event winner, had a civil suit filed
against him by TV executive Crispin Leyser,
who claimed he’d helped Gold get staked for
his $12 million win. (The two later settled, for an
undisclosed amount.) And everyone in the busi-
ness has stories of horses with multiple back-
ers, horses with six-figure makeups ditching
one backer to play for another, horses trying to
welch after a big score. Then there are the con-
tradictions between the pro poker lifestyle
(freedom to play when you want, how you want
and as much as you want) and the responsibili-
ties of backing and being staked (detailed record
keeping, organizing, coordinating).
Five guys
With massive piles of cash on the line, players are about to begin their annual
pilgrimage to Vegas. Starting with the first event in May, through the Main
Event finale in November, the goal is to bring home a World Series of Poker
bracelet … or three. It’s never easy to predict poker success. But, hey, we rolled
the dice and found the five most likely to dominate the circuit this summer.
1 Daniel “JungleMan12” Cates
Every year we watch as celebrated online poker
players make their WSOP debuts. This year, it’s
Cates’ turn. Cates led the virtual felt in 2010 with
more than $5.5 million in earnings. Is he ready
for the grind of real tourneys? We guess yes.
3 erik seiDel
In most other sports, you look back fondly on
the careers of Hall of Famers. Not so with
Seidel: Since his 2010 induction, Seidel has had
a career year ($4.5 million) and looks primed
to add to his 60 WSOP cashes this summer.
4 Jonathan DuhaMel
Since his 2010 Main Event win, Duhamel
hasn’t let up at all, neither in cash games nor
tournament play. For the first time at the Rio,
Duhamel will play with the WSOP bull’s-eye
on him, but the champ seems ready to grind.
98
0502OPMXXX_lo.indd 98
Finally, throw in what might be the biggest
problem with gamblers backing other gamblers:
misjudgment. Most backers are successful play-
ers themselves, who think they can spot talent.
Guys like Mercier start to believe that if they can
find horses half as good as they are, everybody
wins. It’s only now that Mercier is realizing that
most other pros can’t get anywhere near the
results he does. And even then, with the losses
piling up for Mercier, he seems to be in denial
when he talks about being $300,000 in the hole. “I
know they’re good players,” Mercier says. “They
know they’re good players, but sometimes I feel
like they’re the unluckiest guys I’ve ever met.”
Being staked has downsides too. Long hours of
grinding, live and online, help players hone skills
and offset variance. But without a worry of going
broke, O’Brien isn’t motivated to sit in front of a
computer all night hoping to split $2,000 at the
end of the night. He’d rather clean up in cash
games (backing deals generally apply only to
tournament play) to pay the bills, then roll the
dice with Mercier’s money in the bigger tourneys.
“You can get a little lazy,” he admits.
bY ANDReW FelDMAN
2 Mike “tiMex” McDonalD
A year ago, at
age 20 and
already with
$2 million in
live earnings,
Timex laid
down his
cards forever.
Retirement
lasted all of
one year. Now
21, McDonald
is WSOP eligible
and ready to win.
5 Phil ivey
In the past two years, Ivey’s wrist has
accumulated three bracelets and $2.1 million
in 12 WSOP cashes. ESPN.com’s No. 1-ranked
poker player remains the most feared shark
in the game.
Yet the most fundamental problem of staking
deals goes far beyond losing cash or getting
lazy. Poker is supposed to be an individual
sport. But what happens when a backer and
a horse find themselves at the same table? With
no rules requiring disclosure of backing deals,
many tournament directors, fans and even
players have voiced concerns that the game
can become a team sport. “In that situation
it’s almost impossible not to ‘soft play,’ ” says
former WSOP Main Event winner Joe Hachem,
referring to the term in which players fail to
bet or raise because they don’t want to cost
someone else money.
There is no shortage of allegations about
players checking down with quads because a
horse was at the same table, but that’s as far
as the conversation ever goes. Players can claim
they misread their hand or, most times, cards
can be folded (and never shown) suddenly with-
out explanation. Policing, therefore, isn’t possi-
ble until significant rules changes are enacted.
Yet with no centralized governing body—and
no uproar from the players, by the way—don’t
expect a backing ban anytime soon. “There are a
lot of people who think staking arrangements
should be publicly known when you start a
tournament,” says Lance Bradley, editor in chief
of Bluff Magazine. “But I don’t imagine we’ll
ever see an organized movement.”
on DAY 5 of the PCA Main Event, Bari, Mercier
and O’Brien are in their room at the Atlantis.
Clothes litter the floor. A wad of hundreds is
piled on the dresser. Both horses have busted
out of the Main Event … and a $5,000 no-limit
event … and a $2,000 event. The mood isn’t
exactly festive. “It’s the same s—,” O’Brien says.
“Not this tournament in particular, but an accu-
mulation of disappointment.”
He’s ridden out plenty of cold streaks, but this
one has him scratching his head. “I might be
better off if Jay stopped backing me,” he admits.
“It would take away that long-shot payday I keep
trying for. Force me to grind more. I’m looking
forward to our being friends, without this busi-
ness relationship.”
Mercier, who’s sharing the room with his
horses, just listens nearby. He isn’t ready to
cut them off—yet. “There are limits,” he says,
citing the rising makeup figures. “I have a num-
ber in mind, but I keep it to myself.”
Bari opens the heavy curtains. Sunlight floods
the room. He gazes at the swimming pools and
waterslides 23 stories beneath him. “I’m con-
cerned too,” he says. “But it will eventually turn
around. We’re two of the best players in the
JOe GirOn/iMPDi
world—in the top 1%.”
He pauses for a moment in the light.
“And there’s another tournament tomorrow.”Ω
4/15/11 6:50 PM
 All About the Money

FRoM SlIPPeRS to WAtcheS, cAMeRAS to ozzY tIx—

theY DoN’t AlWAYS kNoW WheRe It coMeS

Free
FRoM, AND theY uSuAllY DoN’t cARe. It’S ...

oose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loose change loos

stuff that athletes get

Items offered: three pairs of footwear, 2 meals, 2 watches, 2 vehicles, 2 show tickets, 1 blender, 1 camera, 1 surgery, multiple grocery shopping sprees,
cells and Japanese dolls. Items accepted: All but one. The results:

TechnIcally sPeakInG
We asked athletes what
they get gratis, and they
answered. Most of them,
anyway. Says braves
veteran utilityman eric
hinske: “Nobody gives
me s—!”
Athlete Job Fave Freebie Athlete Job Fave Freebie Athlete Job Fave Freebie
StuFF to WeAR davId orTIz Red Sox DH Pickup truck StuFF to eAt
Tony Gonzalez Falcons TE Bear claw slippers “The dealership gave it to me, MIGuel caBrera Tigers 1B Groceries
“I was going through this crazy kick and I gave it to my dad. That was “At the Super Choice Latin supermarket
where I wanted to have slippers like I the best.” in Lakeland, Fla., everything’s free just
had when I was 6. They don’t make bear because I’m a Tiger. For two years,
StuFF to PluG IN
slippers in a size 16, so my manager got that’s happened every time I go!”
in touch with the people from a store claIre BevIlacqua Surfer Blender
and they made them special for me. calaIs caMPBell Cardinals DT Dinner
“Someone at Vitamix has been
I wear them all the time.” reading my blogs, so they sent me a “People are always trying to wine and
really expensive blender to make the dine me. Back when I was struggling,
Ben Gordon Pistons G Diamond watch I couldn’t afford food. Now that I can
smoothies and juice drinks I
“I got it right before the 2004 draft. I write about.” afford my own meals, they’re free?
guess the owner figured his jewelry Very weird.”
would be seen by a lot of people.” raheeM Brock Seahawks DE Cell phones
ryan lochTe Swimmer Dinner
“In the past two years, I think I got at
ausTIn Jackson Tigers OF Gucci watch “I’ll be at dinner, and they’ll bring the
least 20 new phones. I mean, I have so
“I saw it in the store and told them it many drawers at home just filled with bill, and it’ll be, like, $2. Now, I know I
was nice. Two weeks later, it showed up.” phones. It’s crazy.” ordered a filet and lobster tail. I
know my date ordered a filet and
clay MaTThews Packers LB Leather Uggs elena hIGhT Olympic GoPro video camera lobster tail. I’m like, ‘Man, I swear I can
“They were left in my room after the snowboarder
afford the actual bill. But, hey, $2?
Super Bowl. Sure, they look like “I recently met the owner of the Nice! I’m out of here.’”
old-man slippers, but they’re warm company and told him I was stoked
and don’t make my feet sweat.” on their cameras. A couple weeks hIGhlY RANDoM StuFF
later, he sent one to me.”
allyson FelIx Sprinter Lasik eye surgery
lIndsey vonn Skier Jimmy Choo shoes
StuFF to See
“When they offered it to me, I was like,
“I get a lot of clothes from shoots and ‘Okay, free surgery? Now this is pretty
events. My husband’s happy he doesn't evan lonGorIa Rays 3B Slash and Ozzy cool.’ But I didn’t have the guts. I’m
have to pay for them.” Osbourne concert
passes sticking to my contact lenses.”
StuFF to DRIVe
“That was pretty up there.”
roB Machado Surfer Dolls
BoB BurnquIsT Skateboarder Loaner car JonaThan PaPelBon Red Sox closer sesame street “There’s a guy in Japan who’s famous
live tickets
“I met a guy who worked at a dealer- for making caricature dolls. It’s
ship in Rio. He told me to come by the “My kids liked it. We got to see Elmo.” prestigious to have him make you a
next day and pick out any car I wanted, doll. He sent me a couple, and
Sesame Street live tix go for up to
to use for the week, for free—just for $280 a pop. Sunny days, indeed. they look just like me. I still have
being me.” them at home.”

ESPN (ISSN # 1097-1998) (USPS # 016-356). Volume 14, No. 7, May 2, 2011. ESPN is published biweekly, except monthly in January and July, by ESPN, 19 East 34th St., New York, NY, 10016-4310. The subscription price is $26 for
one year. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY, and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to ESPN, P.O. Box 37328, Boone, IA 50037-0328. For subscription queries, call customer service at 1-888-267-
3684. To change your address, log onto www.accountinfo.espnmag.com.

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0502INTER5_lo.indd 99 4/16/11 1:53 AM