Sporting Chancer

by Ed Hawkins

From tennis against McEnroe to attending an illegal cockfight with Britney Spears' babysitter—a hilarious account of one man's attempts to gamble his way around the globe Ed Hawkins grew up following his father, a horseracing journalist—the frantic betting ring was his math class, and the press box, thick with the haze of cigarette smoke and expletives, his English lesson. So when he found himself out of work after taking a misguided gamble on his career, he took by deciding to wager his way around the globe. Setting himself three challenges to see if he can get that life-changing win, the fun never runs out—unlike the funds. He embarrasses himself playing poker with Hollywood's finest at the World Series in Las Vegas, challenges world champion Phil Taylor to a game of darts, wastes dollars on rooster fighting with Britney Spears' babysitter in Louisiana, and fleeces pensioners on planes. Hawkins tries anything to stay afloat, culminating in a trip to a Glasgow bingo hall to try to land the odds that stare back at him in the mirror after being diagnosed with a rare illness.

217 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 1, 2011

About the author

Ed Hawkins is an author and journalist, known for his investigative reporting. His work has appeared in The Times, the Guardian, and the Daily Mail.

Reviews

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

An occasionally entertaining and quick read for the holidays. Mostly a description of the largely unsuccessful sports betting exploits of the author across a number of stops around the world, starting with an Ashes tour to Australia. Definitely, a third star only for people who enjoy their Cricket. Sadly, there is also no deep insights gleaned by the author, neither for himself, nor (but for a few small reflections towards the end) for others.