The story goes that the late billionaire Australian media magnate Kerry Packer once visited a Las Vegas casino, where a Texan was bragging about his ranch and how many millions it was worth.
Packer produced a coin from his pocket and said: “I’ll toss you for it: my cash against your ranch”.
The Texan declined.
This story may or may not be true. But it is consistent with the old maxim that Australians love a punt and will bet on just about anything, even on two flies crawling up a wall (which one will fly off first?).
A rich history
Australians are the biggest (or worst) gamblers in the world per capita. How did it come to this?
By the 1830s, following European settlement in Australia, there was a steady stream of…