James Edward Duggan Jr.was born on 14 January 1954, in Glens Falls, New York State USA, of English and Scottish descent. He is a professional wrestler, best known as an American patriot, hacking his opponents down with a 2×4 length of wood as a weapon, hence his ring name of Hacksaw.
So just how rich is Hacksaw Jim Duggan now? Sources state that Duggan has earned a net worth of over $2 million, as of late 2016, accumulated largely during his wrestling career which began in the late ‘70s.
Hacksaw Jim Duggan Net Worth $2 Million
Duggan became an avid athlete in high school, excelling in football, track, basketball and wrestling, becoming the first wrestler from Glens Falls to win the New York State High School wrestling championship. He attended Southern Methodist University in Texas, obtaining his Bachelor’s degree in applied plant biology. He played for the school’s football team and, upon graduating, was selected by the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League. However, due to multiple knee injuries, he quit his NFL career.
In the late ’70s, he became involved in wrestling, competing across the country under the name “Big” Jim Duggan. In 1982 he made his debut in Mid-South Wrestling, and began carrying a 2×4 to the ring, gaining the nickname ‘Hacksaw’ and becoming a crowd favorite. He went on to win the Mid-South Tag Team Championship and then the North American Heavyweight Championship twice. His net worth started to rise.
In 1987 Duggan joined the World Wrestling Federation, immediately beginning his first WWF feud, with the Russian Nikolai Volkoff, with whom he had numerous tough matches. The following year he captured national attention when he eliminated One Man Gang to win the inaugural Royal Rumble. He went on to start feuds with several tough ‘villains’, winning against King Harley Race, Dino Bravo, Bad News Brown and Boris Zhukov. After defeating King Haku in 1989, he earned the title of “King of the WWF”, and soon began teaming up with other wrestlers, such as Ax and Smash of the team Demolition, his former rival Nikolai Volkoff and Sgt. Slaughter, completing several victories, all of which added to his wealth. However, he eventually suffered a series of losses against Yokozuna and Bam Bam Bigelow.
In 1994 Duggan joined World Championship Wrestling, immediately winning the United States Heavyweight Championship by defeating Steve Austin; his popularity was boosted. After retaining his title in the following two rematches against Austin, he eventually lost it to Vader. In the following years, he battled the likes of Big Bubba Rogers and Diamond Dallas Page, maintaining his net worth.
After successfully beating kidney cancer in 1998, Duggan returned to the ring. From 2001 to 2005 he battled in the independent circuit. In 2005 he returned to World Wrestling Entertainment, making sporadic appearances on WWE ever since, including the “Royal Rumble”, “Heat”, “Raw” and “Smackdown”. In 2009, he also began wrestling on the independent circuit again. As of 2015, Duggan has been signed to Global Force Wrestling, promoting its events and tours.
Aside from wrestling, he has also been involved in film and television, having appeared in the British television show “Games Master”, in the horror film “Pro Wrestlers vs Zombies”, and in an episode of the reality television series “Duck Dynasty”, adding to his income.
In his private life, Duggan has been married to Debra Duggan since 1989. The couple has two daughters.
Duggan was involved in one controversy back in 1987, when he was arrested for marijuana and cocaine possession, along with his fellow wrestler Iron Sheik. Although Duggan received a conditional release, he was temporarily suspended from WWF due to the incident.
