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Full House and flush are two words related to poker that most people know. Michael Phelps got the best out of it during his trip to Las Vegas. After the 2012 London Olympics, Phelps retired from swimming, with no motivation to go ahead. Hence, he took to new games poker was one of them. During his trip to Los Angeles, he took home $100,000 in one night.

 

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He played a hand in poker at the Caesar’s Palace casino in sin city and walked away with a grand pot prize. With no swimming competitions after 2012, Phelps had fun in his life, doing things he missed out on when preparing for the Olympics. He took home 100,000 dollars, and he spent that money lavishly. 

Michael Phelps’ infamous poker hand

After his game, he went to the Tryst nightclub in the Wynn hotel to spend his prize money. Phelps had gone to play poker earlier, and his friends reported that this was not the first time he was playing the game. However, his friend also mentioned his poker escapades and the addiction they can have on a person. With an attitude to win at all costs, poker can be a dangerous game to play. One wrong move and you can lose whatever you made. Phelps’ friends once expressed their concerns regarding this. 

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“Michael has a “don’t quit until you win” attitude which was great while he was swimming but could be costly playing poker,” mentioned an insider. His friend noticed Phelps played a weekly card game with 25,000 dollars buy-in. But, everyone seemed scared of his poker games and spoke about betting millions on a game. 

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Sadly, he faced an arrest for DUI in 2014, and Phelps was reportedly gambling before the arrest. During those days, Phelps probably went through his worst period in life. 

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Suffering from mental health issues

After being arrested for DUI, Phelps attended rehabilitation and changed his life. He suffered from mental health struggles and could not come to grips. Once a swimmer who dominated the swimming competitions was now facing troubles in every way or form. However, he reunited with his coach Bob Bowman and promised not to take alcohol until he finished the 2016 Rio Olympics. 

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Changing his habits and focusing on the task ahead, Phelps returned to the pool and left swimming with five more Olympic gold medals. With 23 gold medals to his name, he retired in style and now focuses on helping people with mental health problems. Starting a foundation to help kids learn about water safety, Michael created a change in his life.

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