Home /
News /
Don Johnson – The Gambling Genius Who Broke The Casino Bank /

Don Johnson – The Gambling Genius Who Broke The Casino Bank

There are some great blackjack players. And then there are those who tower above the rest with their playing prowess and skill. One such player is Don Johnson. Over the space of a couple of heady years, he took the casinos of Atlantic City to the cleaners. In fact, he managed to pocket around $16 million. Though an excellent card player, he was also able to negotiate better terms from the casinos that were desperate for new business. These allowed him to achieve better odds at the games table.

Rate this news

Don Johnson: A Gambling Genius

It’s not often that a real casino gambling blackjack genius comes along. Once every blue moon there comes a gambler, who not only understands the psychology of gambling, as well as the mathematics. His sole purpose is to go to the casinos to win the jackpot. But also understands how casinos want whales to continue gambling and are willing to fund their expenses. Don Johnson was a man who understood all these things and constantly pushed the casinos to their limits in his demands for special treatment. He knew that one day he would be banned and therefore decided to milk the casinos for both table winnings and generous comps.

Don Johnson swept over the casinos of Atlantic City like a hurricane. Famously he won $6 million at the Tropicana in just a few hours. That came after winning $5 million at the Borgata. With his rapid pace and instinctive ways of betting, he also took Caesars Palace to the cleaners to the tune of $4 million dollars. For many casinos, it was as if Don Johnson came into their establishments as an already-formed perfect gambler. No one had really heard of him up until his amazing runs at the casinos. So just who is Don Johnson?

Who is Don Johnson?

We should start by saying that he’s not the guy in Miami Vice. Though they share the same name, one’s an actor, this other is a sports bettor. Johnson’s career as a gambler really started when he was age 13. He was employed as a racetrack manager in Philadelphia Park. There he studied the form and started experimenting with the world of betting. He also worked at many other horse racing tracks and later took jobs as a state regulator in Oregon, Idaho, Texas and Wyoming. It was around this time that he pioneered a company called Heritage Development. This used computers to analyse racing data and assist his betting programs for horse races.

The middle 2000s saw a massive financial crisis across America. This adversely affected casinos. So much so that there was a huge push to entice high rollers into various casino establishments. But even the very wealthy were hurting. Thus, Don Johnson was able to roll up to casinos and offer to play for the higher stakes. But unlike other gamblers, Johnston was an expert negotiator. Because casinos were so desperate for players, he was able to get them to bend their rules. And in doing so, actually raised the blackjack winning odds in his favour. Yet all this was without technically cheating. And without using tricks such as card counting. By understanding the casinos themselves, then he knew exactly how to win the jackpot.

Atlantic City Casinos Pay The Price

It wasn’t long before Don Johnson’s winning strakes started to gain attention throughout the world of gambling and also from the public. It’s quite something to behold when a gambler regularly bets $100,000 for each hand. The pit bosses and casino owners didn’t know what to think as they watched Johnson win $800,00 in one hand and then in another three hands sequence $1.2 million. The truth is that Don Johnson was a real cool cat. When being interviewed he always appears completely relaxed and he said it was the same for when he was gambling. This is a good mindset whether you’re gambling at a casino or online. Next time you visit 22Bet Casino, try and remain as calm as Don Johnson.

He said no matter how high the stakes or how large the winnings, he never felt any real excitement. Conversely, he never felt any nervousness or tenseness either. To be frank, you might call his playing style incredibly violent. He would always bet as high as he could go and as a result, was able to reap many benefits. For the casinos, he was the most difficult type of customer. A massive whale or high roller who’s willing to pony up huge wagers for each hand.

On the one hand, the casinos wanted him for his spending potential. And yet, on the other hand, they were all quaking in their boots at the prospect that he might take them for millions. Essentially, he was a very easy guy to underestimate. For example, he never cared to dress up smartly, just turning up in a tracksuit. Also, his personality was incredibly jaunty, meaning it was difficult to take him seriously.

Growing Fame And Fortune

As you can imagine, the stories of his casino gambling prowess, as well as his massive spending, soon did the rounds in casino and gambling circles. As a result, many casinos would offer to comp him with everything. This would include fancy wines, expensive cigars, exclusive and extravagant hotel suites and private jets to fly him and his friends around. For his own benefit, he put on a front when dealing with casinos. In fact, one of his jackpot winning strategies was to be selfish and pompous. By playing at being super demanding, he was able to get everything he wanted at any time. On one occasion, just to prove a point, he demanded a change in brands of private jets he was flying on. The casino dutifully obliged.

It wasn’t long before he was running with the jet-set of the time, including Steve Wynn, Steve Aoki and Paris Hilton. He surrounded himself with a huge entourage which the casinos essentially had to pay for. In many ways, Don Johnson wasn’t just burning the casinos at the blackjack gaming tables. He was also taking them for millions of dollars in comps and free entertainment costs. By playing at 22Bet Casino, we can’t promise you million dollar wins. But they do give a very generous welcome bonus to all new players of 122% up to €300!

Rise And Fall Of Don Johnson

But in spite of everything, the one thing Don Johnson wasn’t, was a fool. He knew that all rides would come to an end. He just wanted to push it as far as he could before it reached that breaking point. So he pushed and pushed until the casinos threw up their hands in frustration. They could give no more. He remembers that on one occasion, the police were waiting for him at the entrance of a bar he frequented and he was almost arrested. It’s the proud boast, that the mark of a really famous gambler, is one who is banned from casinos. Simply because they play too well.

And that’s exactly what happened to Don Johnston. He was barred from playing any of the big table jackpot games. Being a high roller, then the whole reason for playing was gone. Nevertheless, Don Johnson sees this as the pinnacle of gambling achievements. In some ways, he views this as winning against the casino. And the banning tells him he has fully beaten the house at their own game.