Charles Barkley reveals why he still needs a bookie for sports betting

Charles Barkley is tired of these FanDuel limits.

The TNT studio analyst and NBA Hall of Famer has long been a big-time gambler, and it seems America’s No. 1 Sportsbook can’t beat his proverbial buddy down the street, who will take his big-money bets.

Barkley admitted on the NHL Altcast of the Florida Panthers vs. Carolina Hurricanes that he has a “bookie on the side” to take care of all of his gambling needs.

“FanDuel only lets me bet so much, so I gotta have a bookie on the side,” Barkley added.

Former NHL player and TNT NHL studio analyst Paul Bissonnette added that Barkley was “trying to get kicked off this stream, like [Panthers star Brad] Marchand got kicked out of last game.”

Barkley has worked with FanDuel for years, even previously dressing up as Santa Claus — nicknamed “Santa Barkley” — for a promotion in 2022.

Barkley saying he wagers with a bookie is potentially acknowledgement of an illegal gambling operation, as anyone taking sports bets in the states needs a very expensive license in that state.

Although, if you can get away with it, Barkley avoids paying taxes on winnings and likely gets better prices than any other sportsbook offers.

FanDuel is a major partner of the NBA and TNT and while the league and network do not publicly disclose just how much the sports betting giant gives them, it’s surely in the hundred of millions, if not billions.

Barkley has said in the past he had a problem gambling, playing $25,000 blackjack hands in Las Vegas.

“I had to change my mentality because you can never break the casino, [but] they can break your a–,” Barkley said.

FanDuel surely could afford to take Barkley’s action, although the sportsbook is very careful about whom they allow to wager large amounts on their app.

Typically, bettors who wager big money on their app are noted career losers whom the sportsbooks expect to win larger amounts on them over time.

ESPN previously reported that sportsbooks were forced to answer for why they were limiting their users at a Massachusetts Gaming Commission meeting.

BetMGM said that limiting users helps them keep things competitive for others.

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“It is our ability to limit that small minority of advantage players that allows us to continue to offer competitive lines, competitive odds in a wide variety of markets for 99% of non-advantage players that play with us,” Sarah Brennan, senior director of compliance for BetMGM, said at the meeting.

Barkley’s action size is surely a risk to their bottom line, although we’ve seen Dave Portnoy wager hundreds of thousands at DraftKings without a limit.

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