The House Always Wins

But Is It Legal? A Web Gambling Mogul Tells His Story To CBS

(CBS)  You won't find it in the stock listings, but one business that has emerged as a huge moneymaker is Internet gambling - a pastime of millions of Americans.

Running an online gambling operation is illegal in the U.S., so the physical nuts and bolts of gambling sites tend to be located in other countries, including Costa Rica.

That's where CBS News correspondent Anthony Mason went for part one of his series, The Biggest Game.

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Calvin Ayre lives in a walled-in compound in San Jose, Costa Rica, with armed guards outside, and a tropical oasis inside - complete with its own miniature mountain – perfect for surveying the palatial grounds and all it contains.

Ayre, whose personal paradise was built with the profits of the Internet gambling site bodog.com, isn't shy about showing off the trappings of his newfound wealth.

It's a bit of a celebration really, as the mogul who began life as the son of a Canadian pig farmer gives a reporter the grand tour, including a stop in front of the Harley he parks in the living room.

"This thing," he says, pointing to custom etching on the bike, "actually has jeweled front forks that say Bodog.com."

Ayre's fortune recently landed him on the cover of the billionaires issue of Forbes magazine.

Ayre, who is 44, says Forbes came in way low with its estimate of his wealth, which he weighs as closer to $1.5 billion.

"I was a math major," he says, with a smile.