Big John McMasters and Square John Sand are two down-on-their-luck oil wildcatters who chase a fragile dream of fortune in the volatile world of oil. With little money to their name, they pull off a risky impulsive theft of drilling gear from Luther Aldrich, a wary businessman who wants his property back, and they barely escape with their reputations intact. Their first attempt at striking oil is a bust, forcing a hurried retreat as the sheriff closes in. Yet this failure only steels their resolve: they pool what little cash remains, raise enough to partial repayment, and gamble on another well. To sweeten the deal and improve their odds, they cut Aldrich in for a share, hoping the gesture will keep him at the table for a second shot.
The plot thickens when Elizabeth “Betsy” Bartlett enters their orbit. McMasters sweeps Betsy off her feet and they marry, while Sand accepts the arrangement because he genuinely wants Betsy to find happiness, even if it means sharing his friend’s good fortune. The marriage, however, becomes a delicate triangle in which Sand views Betsy as his own girl, creating tension that simmers beneath the surface. On their first anniversary, Betsy discovers McMasters dancing with a barroom floozy, and the spark of trust between the two men begins to fray. The moment triggers a quarrel, and the once-solid partnership strains under pressure. Betsy ultimately leaves her husband, only to return when she learns that Sand has taken a larger stake in the same enterprise and nearly stripped McMasters of everything he has built.
From there, the men experience a recurring pattern of booms and busts, a back‑and‑forth dance that tests loyalty and ambition. McMasters remains determined to scale new heights and moves his operation to New York, expanding into refiners and distribution networks. In this high-stakes arena, he finds himself pitted against a formidable former customer, Harry Compton. To gain inside information and an edge, McMasters hires away Compton’s adviser, the savvy and socially connected Karen Vanmeer. Karen uses her networks and charm to gather valuable industry intelligence, enabling McMasters to anticipate market moves and refine his strategy.
Meanwhile, Sand’s fortunes take a dramatic turn in South America, where a political upheaval wipes out the gains he had built up abroad. The two men cross paths again at an oilmen’s convention, where reconciliation slowly returns and Sand goes back to work for his longtime friend. Yet suspicion lingers: Sand begins to suspect that McMasters is carrying on an affair with Karen, and he tries to salvage Betsy’s marriage by proposing to marry Karen himself. Karen discerns the true motive behind his offer and declines, steering the plot back toward a collision course between old loyalties and mounting pressures.
Betsy’s insecurity deepens, and when she attempts suicide by taking sleeping pills, Sand acts decisively. He resolves to bankrupt McMasters as a way to free Betsy from a life of constant strain and betrayal. The gambit succeeds only in driving both men toward ruin, and Sand finds himself poorer than before. The path toward resolution finally arrives when Sand asks McMasters to grant Betsy a divorce, a request that jolts the stubborn industrialist into a rare moment of clarity. In a final reversal of fortune, McMasters faces government action for Sherman Antitrust Act violations and loses his business, a blow that changes nothing about his stubborn resilience.
In the end, the two former rivals emerge intact but tempered, choosing to rebuild together. Sand and McMasters reunite their ventures—with Betsy watching and hoping from the sidelines—as Aldrich reappears at the helm with the necessary equipment to restart the cycle anew. The world of wildcatters circles back to its roots: bold risk, shifting alliances, and the stubborn belief that fortune can favor the determined, even when the odds are stacked against them.
