There are some people who say that entertainment is already at a maximum level when it comes to Gambling. After all, you’re playing games and getting the chance to win money. That’s entertainment for many people around the world. Yet there are also those instances when the enjoyment of gambling goes beyond the simplicity of gameplay.

It is these moments that we like to speak about in our Freaky Fortnight section, which we started in January 2023. And if you aren’t already aware of it, we’ve got some more appealing, amusing stories for you to read about. Join us as we look at more unexpected occurrences and funny instances from within the world of poker and gambling from the first half of August 2023.

Poker Pro Sees His Luxury Yacht Go Up in Flames

When you’re a professional poker player, you stand the chance of winning huge sums of money. You can then splash your cash on whatever you like. Expensive cars. Masses of real estate. Lavish getaways. And even on luxury yachts, which is precisely what Spanish poker pro Diego Gomez Gonzalez did.

Gonzalez, who also goes by the name of “The Lion,” has total live earnings of just under $500,000 and is 59th on the Spanish All Time Money list. His best poker win came in 2012 when he finished 5th at the EPT in Prague, taking home more than $250,000. Doubtless, some of his fortune earned from playing poker helped him to secure an 88-foot luxury yacht. That money wasn’t able to help him save it from a catastrophic fire though.

The yacht, named “Irmao,” is based in Ibiza, and it is marketed online as being available to hire for charter vacations. The vessel holds 12 guests, featuring a VIP cabin, a double cabin, and four twin cabins. Built in 1995, it also incorporates a deck jacuzzi, with guests able to procure water skis, paddleboards, and more. In the summer months, it is available to charter for $58,000.

Yet on Saturday, Aug. 12, the yacht was seen ablaze off the coast of Formentera – one of the Balearic Islands neighboring Ibiza. At 6 p.m., the alarm was sounded while the vessel was anchored off Es Cavall d’en Borras beach. Onboard the yacht were 17 people, including five crew members and 12 passengers. All were rescued by private boats that rushed to their aid, and miraculously, only a single crew member required hospital treatment for minor burns.

Details have not been released on whether Gonzalez himself was aboard the yacht or if it was being chartered. Yet shocking video released by the Spanish coastguard show the vessel being towed out to sea as they try to tackle the blaze. Reports suggest that the fire spread through the yacht in a matter of minutes, transforming it into a ball of fire that people could see from the island of Ibiza. Two rescue boats were sent out by the coastguard to assist.

Unfortunately, despite the best efforts of the coastguard, the luxury yacht disappeared under the water, having been gutted by the flames.

Phil Mickelson’s Extensive Gambling Habit Revealed in New Book

There is a variety of sports stars who enjoy engaging in gambling every now and then. In fact, some of them have even gone above and beyond that and ended up being suspended for their gambling habits. This is something that has occurred throughout history, with NFL players like Alex Karras in 1963 and three players in Quintez Cephus, C.J. Moore, and Shaka Toney suffering such punishment more recently.

Many people have turned their attention to golf superstar Phil Mickelson in recent times though. Everyone knows that the sportsman has participated in gambling throughout his life, in quite a prolific way. Yet perhaps nobody knew precisely how much he had indulged in the activity. That is, until a recent book was published – “Gambler: Secrets from a Life at Risk.”

In that book, legendary sports bettor Billy Walters details his relationship and partnership with the golfer. Certain mind-blowing facts have been included in it regarding his habits, with Walters suggesting that Mickelson has lost around $100 million through gambling. He also says that the sportsman wagered more than $1 billion on gambling.

The excerpt from the book states that Walters ended his betting partnership with Mickelson in 2014. He goes on to say that he then learnt a lot more about the golfer’s betting activities from two “reliable sources.” According to those sources, Mickelson often wagered “$20,000 a game on long-shot, five-team NBA parlays”. At times, he also bet between $100K and $200K per game on football, basketball, and baseball.

In 2011 alone, Walters claimed that Mickelson made 3,154 bets, equating to around nine per day. He also states that the golfer bet $220,000 to win $200,000 on 858 occasions with the sum of those gross wagers totaling over $311 million.

Many people on social media have since commented on the stories regarding Phil’s gambling habit. Some express sadness for the sportsman and his gambling activity, while others remark on it in very negative ways.

If the stories highlighted by Walters are indeed true, then Mickelson certainly has a vast gambling habit.

So far, Mickelson has not made any comment on the claims by Walters about his gambling activities. He has been in the news more so for his golf gameplay, having blown the chance of his first LIV Golf win. His best finish since joining LIV two years ago is in eighth position. One fan approached him with a bet of $1,000 on him making a birdie on the 9th hole at the event in question. Mickelson laughed the offer off, stating that he isn’t “a gambling man,” having opened up about certain addiction struggles.

Disney Has a Change of Heart on Sports Gambling

Toward the beginning of August, a surprise for many people in the gambling world leapt to the forefront. News dropped that Disney (NYSE: DIS) is entering into a partnership with Penn Entertainment (NASDAQ: PENN) to help promote online sports betting. Through Disney’s ESPN cable network, it is almost pushing its way into the U.S. sports and casino gambling scene. The deal with Penn Entertainment is said to be worth $2 billion.

Through the deal, Penn will rebrand its US sports betting portals, currently known as Barstool Sportsbook, to ESPN Bet. That brand is available in 16 U.S. states, and the move comes less than six months after Penn completed its takeover of Barstool.

Under the terms of the agreement, Penn is set to pay ESPN $1.5 billion in cash payments across a 10-year period. It will also grant $500 million in warrants for Penn stock. Rebranding of the Barstool Sportsbook is set to take place in the fall.

It’s quite the turnaround for the Disney brand as well, considering how much it wanted to curtail gambling in the state of Florida. Several years ago, Floridians got to vote on Amendment 3, which would mandate that any expansion of casino gambling in the state would have to be approved by voters. Disney was one of the companies trying to sway the results of the vote, giving $20 million in cash to ensure Amendment 3 was successful.

Now it seems as though the company is more than willing to welcome at least sports betting to the fold. It’s quite the watershed moment as well, considering Disney’s sports cable network is trying to build out its streaming platform ESPN+.

Disney also acquired a 5% stake in the DraftKings company in 2019 upon its purchase of 21st Century Fox. Not only that, but it entered into a deal with Caesars Entertainment, which provided Caesars with the exclusive right to provide sports betting odds to ESPN. Yet even at the start of 2019, Disney chief executive Bob Iger maintained his position that he did not expect his company to get involved in gambling.