Biography & Early Wealth Journey

Kenny Troutt (l) and Bill Casner (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Troutt had a background in network marketing when he and his partner Steve Smith founded Excel Communications, a long-distance telephone service, in 1988. For younger readers, we used to have to pay a premium to dial long-distance calls, so people typically chose a long-distance carrier to bring those costs down. Excel Communications was one of the fastest-growing companies not just in its industry, but in the entire U.S. He took the company public in 1996. It was the youngest company at the time to join the New York Stock Exchange, having been founded just eight years before. In 1998, a decade after its founding (and not long before the entire long-distance company industry would collapse), the company had more than a billion in revenue. Troutt sold the business that same year for $3.5 billion to Teleglobe. He officially became a billionaire that year. He achieved one of his childhood dreams – he escaped his circumstances and was no longer poor.

In 2000, Troutt was presented with the opportunity to buy a 400-acre horse farm in Kentucky called Prestonwood. He seized the opportunity to make another one of his childhood dreams come true. He renamed the horse facility WinStar Farm and set out to make it one of the best horse breeding and racing farms around. Today, WinStar is a more than 2,700-acre farm that has had tremendous success with its horses. Justify won the 2018 Triple Crown, becoming the first Triple Crown winner for Troutt and just the 13th horse to accomplish this feat since 1919. Additionally, Troutt and WinStar have a tie to another Triple Crown winner, as WinStar owns Pioneer of the Nile, the sire of the 2015 winner (12th winner) of the Triple Crown, American Pharaoh. Other successful WinStar horses include Super Saver, the 2010 Belmont Stakes winner, and Creator, the 2017 Belmont Stakes winner.

Primary Income Streams & Multi-Million Contracts

On a personal front, Troutt is a devout Christian who lives in Dallas with his wife Lisa. They have three children. He is a major donor to the Republican party and has supported Rick Perry, Rick Santorum, and Mitch McConnell over the years.

Trending Wealth Dossiers: