Evander Holyfield: Just Another Bum from the Neighborhood?

Back in early June when the rumors started twirling that Evander Holyfield was broke, I refused to believe it. Couldn't happen -- not to this individual I so much admired. Not this giant-killer of a man who has defined his career by beating the odds. While at the same time winning the heavyweight boxing championship an unprecedented 4 times, in addition to banking over 200 million dollars in earnings. No way could this guy be broke.

Then came one of the more astute quotes ever to dribble from the lips of a fighter: "...I'm not broke; I'm just not liquid..." O-kaaayyyyy. And that was fresh on the heels of news that his palatial estate (all 109 bedrooms of it) was being foreclosed and put up on the block. Up until then I wasn't quite convinced. Now here it is early August and darn if Holyfield's house really is being auctioned off, and the word is that he really is broke.

Not only is he "not broke, just not liquid" but I'm thinking he's just not very bright.

Dozens of journalists are asking serious questions of Evander and most of them are along the lines of "How is it humanely possibly to burn through $200 million dollars?" Forget the house, the mortgage, and the 17 bathrooms. What about the kids? At last count it was 11 kids from what -- 5 or 6 different women? Hey do the math. Alimony and child support have burned holes in pockets a lot deeper than Evander Holyfield's.

In fact, most of the news on the wire regarding Evander Holyfield recapitulates the same basic story: house foreclosure, unpaid loans and child support, etc. Only MSN.com has attempted to go a little deeper by looking at all pro athletes and not just boxers and why so many of them go broke. Most professional athletes just don't get it: that the big-money years attached to professional sports is a short-term gig. Athletes and entertainers face the same struggle: their peak earning years go by way to quickly, leaving behind a lifestyle that can't adjust to the loss in income.

Regarding professional sports (in this case professional football) I think it was the late George Halas that said, "...it (the NFL) is not a career, just a stopping off place..." Halas apparently told more than one player of his that they needed to be prepared to quit in the same way that they were prepared to play. True words all - but someone should have repeated them to Evander Holyfield.

The great thing about financial mis-management is that it is truly embraces equal-opportunity. You're skin can be any color at all and you can come from any country in the world and still wake up broke and on the street if you don't watch your finances and learn the basics of buying and spending and more importantly -- saving.

I would just hope that however "liquid" he is, Evander Holyfield can take a few million dollars - or whatever he has left -- and bury it in his backyard (oh wait - he doesn't have a backyard any more, his mansion is being foreclosed) or hide it in a mattress so he still has some pocket change left by the time he is 50. Which by the way is only a few years away (and I don't care what he says, Holyfield won't be fighting any more by that time).

Evander Holyfield continues to tell anyone who is listening that he will regain the Heavyweight Championship a 5^th time. That it is the Lord's plan and that Evander needs the victory to cement his legacy as a truly great boxer.

Unfortunately, news of Holyfield's finacial crisis overshadoqs the many accomplishments he achieved in the ring.