Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs made history with their “Battle of the Sexes” in 1973, but the legendary tennis match was rigged from the start — because Bobby owed money to the mob!
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Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs made history with
their "Battle of the Sexes" in 1973, but the legendary tennis match was rigged from the start — because Bobby owed money to the mob!
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Photo credit: Getty Images
As reported by
The National ENQUIRER, rumors began about Bobby throwing the match within hours of the former champion losing to Billie Jean in 1973. The notorious hustler was known to be a gambling addict — and few people doubted when Hal Shaw came forward to say that he overheard mobsters planning Riggs' big loss!
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"I've carried this with me for 40 years," Shaw told ESPN in 2013, "and I wanted to make sure, if possible, to set the record straight." The former golf pro from Tampa, Fla., told of how he was terrified when mob attorney Frank Ragano, gangster Santo Traffcante Jr. and New Orleans crime boss Carlos Marcello joined Riggs within earshot to plan their bets on the crooked match.
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Veteran gamblers already had their suspicions about Riggs' brutal loss to Billie JEan in three straight sets, since the "male chauvinist pig" had humbled Margaret Court (at left), the world's top-ranked women's tennis pro, just four months earlier. Shaw said that Riggs brought up that match while assuring everyone that "the fix would be in!"
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"Ragano was emphatic," said Shaw, recalling the conversation as Bobby and Billie Jean planned to meet at the Astrodome in Houston, Tex. "Riggs had assured him that...he would beat Margaret Court, and then he would go into the tank" against King.
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The media spectacle also became a feminist cause, and Bobby said on his deathbed in 1995: "Billie Jean beat me fair and square." Shaw, however, says that the mobsters' spoke about Riggs owing the Mafia $100,000 — and, in addition to throwing the game, Riggs was asking for "a certain amount of money to be discussed later."
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Bobby had gotten noticeably out of shape after beating Margaret Court, as well — but he was still the overwhelming pick among Las Vegas bookmakers.
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Before the match, famed handicapper Jimmy the Greek summed up how Bobby was favored to win the matches, with plenty of money to be made by betting on Billie Jean. “King money is scarce," the Vegas legend said. "It's hard to find a bet on the girl."
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Photo credit: Getty Images
Billie Jean —
played by Emma Stone in the big-screen "Battle of the Sexes" — has still remained defiant about Shaw's claims: "This story is just ridiculous. I was on the court with Bobby. I could see in his eyes and body language he wanted to win."
Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs made history with
their "Battle of the Sexes" in 1973, but the legendary tennis match was rigged from the start — because Bobby owed money to the mob!
Photo credit: Getty Images
As reported by
The National ENQUIRER, rumors began about Bobby throwing the match within hours of the former champion losing to Billie Jean in 1973. The notorious hustler was known to be a gambling addict — and few people doubted when Hal Shaw came forward to say that he overheard mobsters planning Riggs' big loss!
Photo credit: Getty Images
"I've carried this with me for 40 years," Shaw told ESPN in 2013, "and I wanted to make sure, if possible, to set the record straight." The former golf pro from Tampa, Fla., told of how he was terrified when mob attorney Frank Ragano, gangster Santo Traffcante Jr. and New Orleans crime boss Carlos Marcello joined Riggs within earshot to plan their bets on the crooked match.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Veteran gamblers already had their suspicions about Riggs' brutal loss to Billie JEan in three straight sets, since the "male chauvinist pig" had humbled Margaret Court (at left), the world's top-ranked women's tennis pro, just four months earlier. Shaw said that Riggs brought up that match while assuring everyone that "the fix would be in!"
Photo credit: Getty Images
"Ragano was emphatic," said Shaw, recalling the conversation as Bobby and Billie Jean planned to meet at the Astrodome in Houston, Tex. "Riggs had assured him that...he would beat Margaret Court, and then he would go into the tank" against King.
Photo credit: Getty Images
The media spectacle also became a feminist cause, and Bobby said on his deathbed in 1995: "Billie Jean beat me fair and square." Shaw, however, says that the mobsters' spoke about Riggs owing the Mafia $100,000 — and, in addition to throwing the game, Riggs was asking for "a certain amount of money to be discussed later."
Photo credit: Getty Images
Bobby had gotten noticeably out of shape after beating Margaret Court, as well — but he was still the overwhelming pick among Las Vegas bookmakers.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Before the match, famed handicapper Jimmy the Greek summed up how Bobby was favored to win the matches, with plenty of money to be made by betting on Billie Jean. “King money is scarce," the Vegas legend said. "It's hard to find a bet on the girl."
Photo credit: Getty Images
Billie Jean —
played by Emma Stone in the big-screen "Battle of the Sexes" — has still remained defiant about Shaw's claims: "This story is just ridiculous. I was on the court with Bobby. I could see in his eyes and body language he wanted to win."
Photo credit: Getty Images