Merle Haggard Sets The Guinness World Record For Buying The Largest Round Of Drinks
I think I’ll just stay here and drink…and with 5,095 drinks, you could stay quite awhile.
The legendary Merle Haggard once held the Guinness World Record for buying the largest round of drinks ever bought by one person – and it’s a record that stood for more than three decades.
The Hag set the record at Billy Bob’s Texas back in 1983 when he ordered 5,095 “C.C. Waterbacks,” a shot of Canadian Club whiskey with a water chaser, for patrons at the bar. Merle bought the shots in honor of his 28th hit song, “C.C. Waterback,” from his 1982 duets album with George Jones, A Taste Of Yesterday’s Wine.
The bar used around 40 gallons of whiskey for the round of drinks, and the bar tab for Merle’s massive order came out to $12,737.50 – or $2.50 each. (If he had bought the same round of drinks today it would have cost him over $40k).
But when the bar owner, Billy Bob Barnett, presented Merle with the check, he offered to buy the Hag a drink on the house – and Merle took him up on it.
Merle’s record stood in the Guinness Book of World Records until 2016, when a U.K. brewery bought 412 beers at a pub to celebrate Queen Elizabeth’s 90th birthday.
And I know what you’re thinking: Wait, only 412 beers? Merle Haggard bought over 5,000 shots.
Well apparently because the beer order amounted to over 42 gallons, while Merle’s was just under 40, the brewery technically broke Merle’s record.
Sounds like some bullshit to me.
I mean, 5,000 shots of whiskey will make a lot more people happy than 400 beers will. So while he may not officially have the Guiness World Record anymore, I’m still choosing to count Merle’s as the largest round of drinks.
But the question remains: Who’s going to break Merle’s record now? George Strait lives down near Billy Bob’s, and he has his own tequila line. So maybe it’s time for the King to step up and buy a few thousand rounds of Codigo to get himself yet another record for the books.
I’ve just gotta make sure I’m there if he does it.