Topic: Rich Athletes who lost their fortunes....

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Costly pro athlete screw-ups

Almost 80 percent of National Football League players are flirting with bankruptcy two years after they retire, according to Sports Illustrated. NBA players aren’t faring much better. 60 percent of former National Basketball Association players end up broke within five years of retirement. Athletes squander millions of dollars due to bad decisions, lavish spending and poor financial planning. Here is a list of athletes that have lost their fortunes through some of the biggest financial blunders of all time.

Scottie Pippen



Known more for his on court defense than his off court business sense, former Chicago Bulls star Scottie Pippen lost $120 million in career earnings due to poor financial planning and bad business ideas. Air Jordan’s sidekick blew $27 million on bad investments and spent $4.3 million on a Gulfstream II corporate jet.

Evander Holyfield



Four-time boxing champ Evander “The Real Deal” Holyfield reportedly made over $250 million in cash during his boxing career, but despite this he reportedly is flat broke. Holyfield lost all his money by making “smart” business decisions look really foolish. You thought buying a house was a smart move? It normally is, but not when you buy a house the size of Rhode Island. Holyfield bought a $20 million house with over 54,000 square feet and 109 rooms. The house has 11 bedrooms, 17 bathrooms, a movie theater, a bowling alley and an Olympic-size swimming pool. Imagine how much it must cost to cut the grass on all 235 acres! You could buy a Range Rover with the electric bill payment alone.

Lenny Dykstra



Former New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies star Lenny “Nails” Dykstra was a success on the baseball diamond, but in the business field Dykstra has struck out. Dykstra’s failed businesses include car washes, a magazine company, real estate investing and a stock trading website. According to Dykstra’s July 2009 bankruptcy filing, he owed more than $30 million to creditors, including his $18.5 million purchase of Wayne Gretzky’s home. The amazing part is that after two foreclosed homes and numerous failed businesses Dykstra is offering the investment advice that led him into bankruptcy for a mere $899 a year! In the investment world, it is often said that past history does not dictate future performance. Nevertheless, it’s pretty clear Dykstra isn’t the guy to go to for advice.

Latrell Sprewell




Look up the word “shortsighted” in the dictionary and you will see a picture of Latrell Sprewell. He famously turned down a $21 million contract because he said it wasn’t enough money to feed his family. Sprewell, who made over $96 million during his career, lost his $1.5 million dollar Italian yacht, named “Milwaukee’s Best”, in 2007. According to MSNBC, a U.S. marshal seized the yacht after Sprewell defaulted on his mortgage. His $5.4 million house went into foreclosure in May 2008. Don’t blame Sprewell for turning down the three-year, $21 million contract though. I mean really, who could live off a measly $7 million a year?

John Daly



Two-time PGA major champ John Daly gambled away between $50 and $60 million in career earnings, according to his 2006 autobiography. Daly once lost $1.65 million in five hours playing the slot machines at a casino. If you think that’s impressive, there’s more. Daly blew $1.2 million in a mere two hours and 30 minutes at a casino in Las Vegas. He just had his $1.6 million house foreclosed on. Did Daly quit gambling after blowing so much cash at the casino tables? Not by a long shot. Instead, he decided to downgrade from the $5,000 slot machines to the $100 and $500 machines. It looks in John Daly’s world, that is considered sound financial planning.

Jack Clark



Former professional baseball slugger Jack Clark was driven into bankruptcy in 1992 by his appetite for luxury cars. According to his bankruptcy filing, he owned 18 luxury automobiles, including a $700,000 Ferrari and a Rolls Royce. Clark was trying to pay 17 car notes simultaneously, and whenever he got bored with a car he would get rid of it and just buy another one. He ended up losing million-dollar homes and his drag-racing business because of his extravagant spending habits, but despite one of the most publicized bankruptcies in baseball, Clark reportedly got back on his feet in the late ’90s.

Mike Tyson



The king of them all is boxer Mike Tyson, who squandered a $350 million to $400 million dollar fortune. So what did “Iron” Mike spend his fortune on? Everything. He dropped half a million dollars on a 420-horsepower Bentley Continental SC with lamb’s wool rugs, a phone and a removable glass roof. It is one of only 73 Bentley Continental SCs ever built. The sad part is that’s not even the only Bentley that Tyson owned! He spent over $4.5 million dollars on cars alone. Throw in a $2 million dollar bathtub and $140,000 for two Bengal tigers and you can see why Tyson’s fortune is down for the count. He filed for bankruptcy in 2003.

source: Mark Riddix - Investopedia.com

http://ca.sports.yahoo.com/top/news?slug=ys-investopediamoneyloss031010&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

addition:

Many top pro athletes have a hard time holding on to their enormous salaries. Bad business decisions, extravagant spending and scammers often played a role in their financial mishaps

Michael Vick



At one point, Michael Vick was the highest-paid player in the NFL. Now, according to the Associated Press, Vick is making 12 cents an hour at a job at the federal penitentiary in Levenworth, Kan., where he's serving a 23-month sentence. Vick's arrest on dogfighting charges and suspension from the NFL devastated his finances. Without his NFL salary, the fleet-footed quarterback is filing for bankruptcy. In court filings, Vick says he has assets of $16 million and liabilities of $20.4 million.

Bobby Orr



When National Hockey League great Bobby Orr retired in 1978, one accountant estimated the defenseman owed more money than he had. A few years later, Orr accused his agent Alan Eagleson of mismanaging his finances. Orr sat in the courtroom when Eagleson pleaded guilty to schemes to defraud NHL Players. The agent, who also served as the head of the NHL player's union, took money from the pensions and disability insurance of players.

Björn Borg



By the time Björn Borg retired from tennis at the age of 27 in 1983, the Swede won 11 Grand Slam championships. He tried to replicate his on-court success in the world of fashion with the Björn Borg Design Group. The company quickly ran into liquidity problems and shut down in 1989. According to the Associated Press, Borg refused to take outside financing out of fear of losing control of the company. Creditors later sued Borg but he claimed he couldn't pay because he was "more or less bankrupt."

source: http://www.forbes.com/2008/11/25/unitas-borg-money-biz-sports-cx_af_1125athletefinances_slide.html?thisSpeed=30000