The House Always Wins

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.

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.

Not far away, at bodog.com headquarters in this Central American tax haven, you can hear the bets coming in, as the bookmakers keep their eyes on the odds – 24 hours a day.

They've got to, says Ayre.

"If they make mistakes, we lose money," he says, watching them at work. "But these guys never make mistakes. Right, guys?"

Ayre may himself may be playing a risky game. The U.S. Justice department says taking bets over the Internet is against the law.

"We don't consider what we're doing illegal, though," says Ayre, explaining his view that the operation is in the clear because the transactions occur in Costa Rica.

Bodog.com took in more than $7 billion in bets last year - most of it from the U.S., where Ayre says the company has no office, no employees, and pays not a penny in U.S. taxes.

Asked if he should be paying taxes to the U.S., Ayre says: "I think we should be allowed to compete in the United States... But right now the government of the United States has chosen not to participate in this industry."

So far, the U.S. government has not come after Ayre, but Canada has. In 1996, accused of insider trading, he agreed to a 20-year ban from the Stock Exchange.

That incident he now calls a mistake and "a very valuable learning experience."

The flashy lifestyle isn't completely a matter of personal indulgence.

On magazine covers and in gambling shows he is now developing, Ayre works at epitomizing the playboy lifestyle to which his customers aspire.

The attention it brings, says Ayre, is good for business.

A bit risky?

"Potentially," he acknowledges, "but so is going broke."

Ayre likes his odds, even if he may be gambling with the law.