From slopes to cover tables
Molly was born in 1978 in Loveland, Colorado, and her parents guided her to athletic pursuits throughout her life. Her father was an accomplished psychologist and her mother a ski coach. From a young age, she trained for an Olympic career and was on track to become a professional in acrobatic downhill skiing. But fate dealt her a hard fall, literally.
In fact, she had a serious accident during one of her competitions that took her out of professional sport forever. With no clear future, she decided to move to Los Angeles, where she wanted to see where her life would go. Here, however, she stumbled upon something that led her down a dangerous but profitable path - the world of illegal gambling.
A world of luxury and high stakes
It all started with an innocent job as an assistant to the owner of The Viper Room. One day, he gave her a task that was about to change her life - to organise secret poker games for VIP clientele. It all kicked off with actor Tobey Maguire (best known for his role as Spider-Man) approaching the club owner to see if he could host a poker game there. It is therefore understandable that various Hollywood stars gradually appeared among the players.
Molly quickly realised that with good management, discretion and charisma she could take over the world. Eventually, she became independent and set up her own exclusive poker games, where a seat at the table was worth hundreds of thousands of dollars in buy-ins. The games moved to luxury hotels and residences where celebrities such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck took turns playing. The high stakes also attracted Wall Street rich and Russian oligarchs. Winnings and losses were in the millions per night and Molly Bloom saw some incredible things: "One night I saw someone lose $100 million. But the next day he made up his loss."
A poker business that spiraled out of control
Over time, however, the innocent game became a dangerous trap. Moreover, Molly admitted that it was taking a toll on her mentally: "It's exhausting and lonely living in secrecy all the time! I couldn't tell my in-laws what I was doing, I could barely tell my own parents."
But the family eventually learned why Molly was in the FBI's crosshairs. The first time was in 2011, when she became part of the investigation into financier Bradley Ruderman. He was running a Ponzi scheme to settle his debts from poker tournaments. However, the FBI failed to prove that Bloom was involved in any of the player's illegal activities, so she was released without charges. Thus, the end of poker tournaments came in 2013, when Molly Bloom was arrested and charged along with 33 others in a raid against illegal gambling. She faced up to 10 years behind bars. However, Molly decided to cooperate with the law enforcement and in 2014 she was sentenced to a year's probation, 200 hours of community service and a $1,000 fine. Despite her years of illegal activities, Bloom had a large debt at the time.
Molly's Game: The Story That Conquered Hollywood
Even before she was arrested, Molly had begun writing a book about her experiences, and after the trial she decided to share her story. The autobiography "Molly's Game" became a bestseller and caught the attention of screenwriter Aaron Sorkin, who directed the 2017 film of the same name starring Jessica Chastain. The film became a hit and was even nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.
Today, Molly no longer organizes illegal games. Instead, she gives motivational talks and helps young people discover their path. Although her story began on the sports slopes it continued at the poker tables, ending up as proof that even after a hard fall it is possible to get back up and start again.
Source - Wikipedia, The Times, Looper, BBC, NPR
