Until Tiger Woods came along, Jack Nicklaus was probably the man most people thought of as the greatest golfer of all time. There are many among his wide fan base who would say that he still is. "The Golden Bear" had a long career full of accolades and championships, winning the masters six times, the US Open four times, the Open Championship three times and the PGA Tour an astonishing seventy-three times. He won his sixth masters at 46 years old, an age by which most professional golfers have called it a day.
His course design company, Nicklaus Design, is believed to have designed and opened over 400 golf courses across the world. Nicklaus Golf Equipment retails golfing goods aimed at players of all levels of experience and licensing his name to video game developers has also kept the money rolling in for the legend. In 2014, his long and glorious career was recognized as he was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal.
To insure one’s house, one’s car or to underwrite a life insurance policy, that is common practice. But who would pay an insurance premium for his/her thumb, legs or smile? Stars, of course.
At the top of the ranking are the legs of Mariah Carey, worth 810 million USD: The diva became, in 2006, the Gillette brand muse for the advertising campaign «Legs of a Goddess». She then took out an insurance policy with London Lloyds to protect her legs, a decision that is far from being insignificant. Among its customers, the London insurer then included several icons of music, such as Bob Dylan or Rod Stewart.
David Beckham’s body insured for 195 million USD: European champion with Manchester United in 1999, David Beckham was in 2006 the most renowned footballer of the planet. In relation to his sporting activities, he took out an insurance cover for his legs. The huge amount paid for his insurance would reportedly exceed the 103 million USD disbursed by Real Madrid for the cover of Christiano Ronaldo in 2009. The fashion model would later extend his insurance cover to his entire body.
15 million USD in insurance for Kim Kardashian’s curves: The curves of Kim Kardashian are her number one beauty asset. The reality TV star, who is crazy about plastic surgery, has underwritten an insurance policy worth 15 million USD to protect her famous butt.
The culinary critic Egon Ronay assured his taste buds: The famous Hungarian culinary critic has insured his taste buds since 1957, for the amount of 400 000 USD. An original insurance policy which allows him to cover his sense of taste without which he will no longer be able to practice his job.