Dying Man’s Cash Windfall for Staying Alive

ABC's Emily Wither from London:

When Jon Matthews was diagnosed with terminal cancer back in 2006 he decided to battle his illness by placing a bet on his life.

It’s a wager that has paid off quite nicely for him. Defying all doctors’ predictions that he’d be dead within months he has now collected a check for $8230.

Mr. Matthews — from Buckinghamshire in England — placed a wager that he’d keep on going till June 1st 2008 after doctors told him he wouldn’t see in 2007. He put down $164 stake with odds 50/1 with betting company William Hill.  He won big.

He then bet again that he’d be seen in one more year netting him another $8230.

Graham Sharpe from William Hill took the bet on and told ABC News that when he presented Mr. Matthews with this check today he was confident the company would be paying out again.

“When I gave him the money he was in the rudest of health, he’s now placed another bet upping the stakes and said he’d be back in a year’s time to collect over $1600 and I rather suspect he will!”

Jon, 59, has mesothelioma cancer and was told it was a death sentence. He’s said that by betting on his life it’s a fun way of keeping him going by emphasizing on something positive and giving him another incentive to battle his illness. Jon’s been donating a portion of his money to various cancer charities.

Sharpe told ABC News that he’s never been so happy in his 30 year career paying out to a better. 

But he says that bets on life are more common than one would think in Britain, “I had a man a couple of years ago who wanted to bet with us he would die within 6 months because if he didn’t his family would be liable for a tax bill so if he won he’d cover the bill with the winnings. He stayed alive so we won the bet but then it didn’t matter as they didn’t get the tax liability bill.”

Sharpe added that sometimes they have to turn bets on people’s life down.

“There was a gentleman who wanted to predict the day his wife would die, I reluctantly turned down his request on the basis that I had visions of a murder suspect presenting a betting slip.”

Jon told the press that his doctors said the longest they’d heard of anyone surviving mesothelioma cancer after diagnosis was 25 months.

I bet they didn’t expect Jon to survive 38 months.