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Billy Walters

CEO of The Walters Group, Entrepreneur, New York Times Best-Selling Author & Philanthropist

CEO of The Walters Group, Entrepreneur, New York Times Best-Selling Author & Philanthropist

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California, USA
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Billy Walters Biography

William Thurman Walters was born July 15, 1946, in the small town of Munfordville, Kentucky, where his grandmother raised him in a house with no running water or indoor plumbing. His mother, who was an alcoholic, walked out on her family shortly after his father’s death, when Mr. Walters was an infant.

At age seven, Billy Walters launched his first business when his grandmother, who worked full-time cleaning homes and at a restaurant, helped him secure a $40 loan from the local bank so that he could purchase a lawnmower. He repaid the loan within two years and graduated to his next business venture. He got a paper route, waking up at 4:30 a.m. every day to deliver papers before school.

In addition to her work ethic, Walters’ grandmother imparted her faith and devotion to the community around her to young Billy. A regular churchgoer, she brought Walters to services and/or Bible study on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays. Walters became a leader in the church youth group, ultimately reaching the level of Ambassador Exemplary.

When Walters was 13, his grandmother passed away. Walters moved to Louisville to live with his mother and her new husband and their stepchildren. His mother relegated him to a room in the basement and charged him $10 per week in rent. Walters’ mother was verbally abusive, and she and her husband often would go on benders and lock themselves in their room for multiple days at a time.

Walters landed jobs at the Davis Doughnut Bakery, where he worked from 4:30 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. before school, and a Joe Graves Shell gasoline station, where he worked after school from 3:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.

Those experiences in his early life shaped the man that William Walters would become. He is hard-working, self-sufficient, and resilient in the face of adversity. But above all, Walters’ childhood taught him the importance of kindness and generosity to those suffering, those less fortunate, or those otherwise down on their luck. An example of Billy Walter’s character: When his mother contracted emphysema in later years, Walters paid her bills and ensured she was comfortable at the end of her life, despite the abuse he endured from her as a child.

From these humble beginnings, Billy Walters went on to become a legendary sports gambler, champion poker player, and chief executive of a business empire with investments in real estate, luxury golf courses, car dealerships, and a wide range of startups and other industries.

Walters first started gambling when he was six years old when his grandmother took him to his uncle’s pool hall. He would play a game of nine-ball for a penny, and in the summers, he worked racking balls and preparing food. Walter’s placed his first sizeable bet at age 10 against a local grocer for $125 on a World Series game between the New York Yankees and the Brooklyn Dodgers. He bet on the Yankees, and they lost.

After high school, Walters supported himself and his young family by taking a sales position at McMackin Auto Sales, beginning a career in the automobile sales industry that spanned from 1965 to 1981. He went on to become a sales manager at Stevens Brothers Auto Sales. Eventually, he started his own business, Taylor Boulevard Auto Sales. Walters left the industry to move to Las Vegas to focus on sports betting.

There, Walters became one of the most successful sports gamblers of all time, pioneering the use of computer analytics to handicap games. Separately, he became an acclaimed poker player, winning the No Limit Hold ‘Em tournament at the 1986 Super Bowl of Poker.

In 1988, after retiring from the world of poker and non-sports gambling, Walters and his wife started their own company, growing from just the two of them to some 2,000 employees. Beginning with investments in commercial and residential real estate, The Walters Group also entered the golf industry, purchasing, renovating, operating, and selling golf and country clubs around the United States. In 2000, The Walters Group opened its marquee Bali Hai Golf Club on the Las Vegas Strip.

As The Walters Group was developing and operating luxury facilities, Walters never lost sight of his beginnings and looked for business opportunities that would benefit the community. Walters built a golf course in a rundown part of Las Vegas as part of a city revitalization effort. At the time, Las Vegas golf courses had become so expensive that they were out of reach for many of the city’s residents. An avid golfer himself, Walters developed a course that was accessible and affordable to all and also used the grounds to host clinics for beginners and junior golfers. He also hosted charity events and helped establish the Northern Nevada chapter of the First Tee, a non-profit youth organization that provides educational programs that build character, instill life-enhancing values and promote healthy choices through the game of golf.

With a reputation as a man of his word who prefers handshakes over contracts, Walters also developed contacts in the world of business, politics and sports.

Generally reticent of the media, Walters agreed to an interview in 2011 with the television news program, 60 Minutes, in the hope it would help the overall image of Las Vegas and to educate the public on legalized sports betting. The resulting program helped cement Walters’ national reputation as an astute bettor and an even more generous philanthropist.

It also attracted the attention of law enforcement, particularly after Walters criticized Wall Street and the regulatory agencies charged with overseeing it.

In 2017, Walters was convicted of insider trading in a case marred by government misconduct. He was sentenced to five years in prison and paid $43 million to the government, despite a recommendation from the U.S. Probation Office that he receive a sentence of 366 days and a $10 million fine. One-hundred friends, ranging from his employees to professional athletes to powerful Washington politicians, wrote letters in support of Walters. You can read more here.

Walters continues to deny any wrongdoing and has appealed his case to the U.S. Supreme Court. In October 2020, Walters filed a lawsuit against five former DOJ and FBI officials accusing them of covering up and lying to the federal court about illegal leaks of false information to the media. The case is ongoing.

On January 20, 2021 Walters was granted a presidential commutation. The White House stating, “In addition to his established reputation in the sports and gaming industry, Mr. Walters is well known for his philanthropic efforts and was previously named Las Vegas’ Philanthropist of the Year.”

The act of clemency was supported by former Majority Leader Harry Reid, former Governor Jim Gibbons, former Representative Shelley Berkley, former Clark County Sheriff William Young, former Police Commissioner Bernie Kerik, numerous professional golfers including Butch Harmon, David Feherty, and Peter Jacobsen, and former 60 minutes correspondent Lara Logan.

Now in his seventies, Billy Walters says he will continue to work hard and to support those in need.

Billy Walters Videos

  • Legendary sports bettor Billy Walters on what he'd wager for Super ...
  • Inspiring Tale of Overcoming Adversity: Billy Walters' Journey in ...

Billy Walters Books

  • Gambler: Secrets from a Life at Risk
    Gambler: Secrets from a Life at Risk

FAQs on booking Billy Walters

  • How do I book Billy Walters to speak at my event?

    Our experienced booking agents have successfully helped clients around the world secure speakers like Billy Walters for speaking engagements, personal appearances, product endorsements, or corporate entertainment since 2002. Click the Check Availability button above and complete the form on this page to check availability for Billy Walters, or call our office at 1.800.698.2536 to discuss your upcoming event. One of our experienced agents will be happy to help you get speaking fee information and check availability for Billy Walters or any other speaker of your choice.
  • What are the speaker fees for Billy Walters

    Speaking fees for Billy Walters, or any other speakers and celebrities, are determined based on a number of factors and may change without notice. The estimated fees to book Billy Walters are for live events and for virtual events. For the most current speaking fee to hire Billy Walters, click the Check Availability button above and complete the form on this page, or call our office at 1.800.698.2536 to speak directly with an experienced booking agent.
  • What topics does Billy Walters speak about?

    Billy Walters is a keynote speaker and industry expert whose speaking topics include Authors, Business, Business Growth, Entrepreneurship, Inspirational, Literary, Motivational, Sports.
  • Where does Billy Walters travel from?

    Billy Walters generally travels from California, USA, but can be booked for private corporate events, personal appearances, keynote speeches, or other performances. For more details, please contact an AAE Booking agent.
  • Who is Billy Walters’s agent?

    AAE Speakers Bureau has successfully booked keynote speakers like Billy Walters for clients worldwide since 2002. As a full-service speaker booking agency, we have access to virtually any speaker or celebrity in the world. Our agents are happy and able to submit an offer to the speaker or celebrity of your choice, letting you benefit from our reputation and long-standing relationships in the industry. Please click the Check Availability button above and complete the form on this page including the details of your event, or call our office at 1.800.698.2536, and one of our agents will assist you to book Billy Walters for your next private or corporate function.
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    AAE Speakers Bureau is a full-service speaker booking agency, meaning we can completely manage the speaker’s or celebrity’s engagement with your organization from the time of booking your speaker through the event’s completion. We provide all of the services you need to host Billy Walters or any other speaker of your choice, including offer negotiation, contractual assistance, accounting and billing, and event speaker travel and logistics services. When you book a speaker with us, we manage the process of hosting a speaker for you as an extension of your team. Our goal is to give our clients peace of mind and a best-in-class service experience when booking a speaker with us.
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    If you’re looking for the best, unbiased speaker recommendations, paired with a top-notch customer service experience, you’re in the right place. At AAE Speakers Bureau, we exclusively represent the interests of our clients - professional organizations, companies, universities, and associations. We intentionally do not represent the speakers we feature or book. That is so we can present our clients with the broadest and best performing set of speaker options in the market today, and we can make these recommendations without any obligation to promote a specific speaker over another. This is why when our agents suggest a speaker for your event, you can be assured that they are of the highest quality with a history of proven success with our other clients.

Billy Walters is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics . The estimated speaking fee range to book Billy Walters for your event is available upon request. Billy Walters generally travels from CA, USA and can be booked for (private) corporate events, personal appearances, keynote speeches, or other performances. Similar motivational celebrity speakers are Earvin “Magic” Johnson, Emmitt Smith, Israel Idonije, Dave Dravecky and Tiki Davis. Contact All American Speakers for ratings, reviews, videos and information on scheduling Billy Walters for an upcoming live or virtual event.

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