During his days as a cash game player, Howard Lederer was known to be an action guy with no trepidation when it came to putting up big money on goofy wagers. Pointing out that it’s not much of a joke when five- or six-figure sums are riding on a proposition bet, he says, ‘This is what being a gambler is about – you make claims, you say you can do something, you put your money up. That’s how we can see who’s talking shit and who isn’t.’

Here are a few of his greatest hits and misses.

Don’t have a cow, man
Lederer, a vegan, once received ,000 from David Grey for eating a hamburger. When he offered an opportunity for Grey to get his money back by downing a few olives, Grey (who, obviously, hates olives) turned the offer down.

Tall order
Huck Seed said that he could learn to do a standing backfl ip and land on his feet. Lederer bet him k he couldn’t and gave Huck a few months to practise. ‘The guy is 6’ 7”,’ says Lederer. ‘I lost the bet, but it had to be tough for him.’

Par for the course
Grey and Lederer made a 0,000 golf bet with John Hennigan. They golfed 54 holes over three days and scrambled with each other while Hennigan scrambled his own ball. ‘John hit every putt twice,’ explains Lederer. ‘You know how strong that is? We beat him by two shots.’

Fat chance
Overweight poker players are notorious for making weight loss bets. And Lederer has not been immune to this wager. ‘I lost every one,’ he admits, ‘except for one I had with Chip and Doyle, in which we all had a target to hit. I got k on that’ – but it barely put a dent in the 0k he dropped to them on a similar bet.