“A Real Emotional Breakdown”: Known for Betting Away $25 Million, Charles Barkley Once Had Pro Golfer in Tears Over Gambling Streak

Basketball isn’t the only thing Charles Barkley loves. The NBA legend also has an affinity for gambling. Barkley doesn’t just put a couple of bucks on the table, though. He lays down the big bucks. Professional golfer Andres Gonzalez heard about Barkley’s gambling streak. When he found out the Hall-of-Fame forward lost $25 million, he couldn’t contain his tears.

Gonzalez finds himself betting from time to time, but he witnessed a new side of it through Barkley. The two once engaged in a blackjack game. It was a run-of-the-mill experience for Gonzalez, who was a big fan of the card game. It didn’t take much time for it to become the most memorable of his life.

Barkley started betting as much as $10,000 each round. Gonzalez couldn’t believe his eyes. That amount of money being thrown around so loosely didn’t sit well with him.

Gonzalez made an appearance on GOLF’s Subpar podcast in 2021, where he went into detail about the experience with Barkley. He went on to reveal the tumultuous emotional experience his body went through shortly after.

“I had a real emotional breakdown with Chuck,” Gonzalez said. “It was a panic attack. I had some stuff in my system, and I was just emotional.”

Barkley’s habits gave Gonzalez an immense amount of stress. He couldn’t bear to watch the 11-time All-Star aimlessly throw away his money, and he broke down into tears.

Gonzalez couldn’t believe Barkley could be so accepting about potentially losing so much money. “Potentially” isn’t even the correct word, since Barkley has lost plenty of money from gambling. He has been incredibly transparent regarding that area.

During his appearance on Shannon Sharpe’s Club Shay Shay podcast, Barkley opened up about his shocking gambling losses.

“There’s probably been 25 times I’ve lost a million,” Barkley revealed in a 2024 article with Fadeaway World. That figure doesn’t strike Barkley as a problem, since he enjoys the experience that gambling provides.

Everyone has their share of hobbies that bring them joy; for Barkley, that is gambling. Fortunately, for the Inside The NBA star, he is in the financial position to be able to fork up large sums of cash during his gambling sessions.