In order from L-R: Jimmie Foxx, Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig and Al Simmons. Image via Wikipedia.com

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The Bet Between Baseball Legends Babe Ruth And Jimmie Foxx That Really Ticked Off Babe Didrikson

Some titans of sports may have gotten into a little tiff while playing golf together

Andrew Martin
4 min readAug 13, 2024

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A common occurrence among professional athletes is betting. This isn’t gambling on the outcomes of the games in which they are participating (although this has happened before), it’s little things like how far someone can throw, or if they can sink the next shot. One of the more humorous wagers in sports history may have been a simple golf bet allegedly made between two baseball legends, which in turn ended up infuriating one of the greatest women athletes of all time.

Famed sportswriter and historian Fred Lieb recalled in 1955 that the Old Jungle Golf Club in St. Petersburg, Florida was where Jimmie Foxx, Babe Ruth, Babe Didrikson and Lloyd Gullickson played together on occasion. Before moving on any further, let’s familiarize ourselves with the principle characters in this humorous story.

Fred Lieb: Lieb was an American sportswriter and baseball historian who became renowned for his extensive coverage of Major League Baseball. Over a six-decade career, he wrote for various newspapers and magazines, chronicling the game and its legends. He authored a number of books, including team histories…

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Andrew Martin
Andrew Martin

Written by Andrew Martin

Dabbler in soccer, history, investing & writing. Master’s degree in baseball history. Passionate about history, diversity, culture, sports, film and investing .

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