Michael Jordan was usually a man who knew how to stay out of controversy. Unlike other superstars close to his caliber, he was relatively cleaner with not much need for publicity stunts or strange antics. In fact, he was so hounded by popularity, that Michael preferred to keep his personal hobbies personal.
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The only thing he couldn’t hide from the public was his golf and gambling addictions. Michael Jordan loved Golf and he loved gambling but he loved combining them even more. Even when Michael was away from golfing and gambling, he was still trying to optimize his chances of winning bets on the golf course.
Roland Lazenby, in his book Michael Jordan: The Life, detailed one such story. A story that is perhaps also a confession of MJ’s infidelity with Juanita Vanoy.
Michael Jordan asked for Golf tips in a Men’s club
Perhaps no story comes close to describing MJ’s obsession with golf more than this one by Roland Lazenby. In his book, he wrote how Mark Cuban, Charles Oakley, and Michael Jordan visited a Men’s club in 2004. They dined, drank, and were having quite a night.
In the same club, the bartender, a man by the name of Daniel Mock, remembered meeting Michael Jordan years ago. He relayed the same information to Oakley who wanted to introduce him to his legend. After initial reluctance, Mock finally walked up to Michael and told him he was a big fan.
Later that night, Mock was talking to Oakley about the golf club Michael was supposed to play in. Jordan overheard the bartender and joined in and asked Mock to tell him more about the course. Mock began his detailed analysis but the scene remained in his memory forever.
Roland Lazenby wrote of it in his book: “The bartender then launched into an extended description of the lay of the
course, and offered advice on which clubs to use on which holes, where to use a 3-wood, where not to. “He sat there like five minutes, just staring at me, like he was recording everything,” Mock said. “Then he played pool. He played doubles, him and this little Chinese chick against these two tall blondes, Pamela Anderson types. They’re playing topless. He’s got a huge cigar in his hand, and he played one-handed. And every time he’d go to hit, he’d be standing there with this huge cigar in his mouth. He’d have one hand behind his back, kind of resting the cue on the table. And every time he’d go to hit, one of the girls would get down on the table and hang her t*ts on the table.”
Perhaps this lifestyle pushed Juanita Vanoy to a divorce
Unfortunately, when this scene took place, Jordan was still married to Juanita Vanoy. They would divorce two years later in 2006. MJ’s lifestyle after leaving Wizards wasn’t comforting for his wife.
Michael Jordan and wife Juanita Vanoy ended their 17-year marriage in 2006. In the settlement, she won $168 million, the seven-acre estate in Chicago, and custody of their three children. One of the largest settlements in sports history. She was notably missing from #TheLastDance pic.twitter.com/tJljXaNe2p
— Twisted History (@twistedhistory) May 28, 2020
The divorce in 2006 was only natural if such Men’s club visits were often in MJ’s schedule. However, despite the heartbreak and the pain of her husband’s infidelity, Vanoy did come out of the divorce winning. The settlement, the $168 million settlement, was one of a kind. And maybe it was well deserved. What do you think?
