Over the next three weekends, there will be no shortage of wild March Madness bets — winners and, to be sure, a fair number of losers.
But one bettor kicked off the madness early, landing a quarter-million dollars in the process.
More on that winning wager, a golf winner of nearly $500,000, notable parlay hits and other interesting plays as we recap betting from the past week or so.
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Penn is Mightier
With 3:19 remaining in Sunday’s Ivy League Tournament final, Penn trailed Yale 71-65. With 12 seconds left, the Quakers were still down four at 73-69.
Somewhere in the midst of those three minutes or so, a Fanatics Sportsbook customer had an itch to back Penn live on the moneyline. And figured, why not add Purdue to upset Michigan in the upcoming Big Ten Tourney final, as well?
And why not put a hefty $7,665 on such a parlay?
As you can see, Penn was a healthy +750 underdog on the live moneyline. That’s primarily what helped the two-leg parlay’s odds reach +2365. The bettor then utilized a profit-boost promo, hiking the odds to +3145, or just beyond 31/1.
The Quakers’ TJ Power stunningly hit two 3-pointers in the final handful of seconds, forging a 75-all tie and overtime. Then Penn went on to win 88-84.
Purdue followed with an 80-72 upset of Michigan.
The unlikely parlay hit gave the bettor a whopping $241,109.12 in profit, for a total payout of $248,774.45. Madness, indeed.
Young Gun
With how awesome Scottie Scheffler has been over the past couple years, some sportsbooks are getting creative in order to draw more action.
For example: Fanatics Sportsbook offered a to-win market on The Players Championship that didn’t include Scheffler. Such a bet has two ways to win: The first, of course, is if the golfer you wagered on wins.
The second is if Scheffler wins, and the golfer you bet on takes second.
One bettor got there big via the traditional first method, after putting $12,500 on Cameron Young +3750 to win the tournament.
Young shot 3-under 33 on the back nine Sunday for a 13-under 275 total, beating Matt Fitzpatrick by one shot.
So the bettor pocketed a massive windfall of $468,750 (total payout $481,250).
At DraftKings Sportsbook, a bettor got Young at +3200 on a $3,150 wager. That produced a six-figure win of $100,800 (total payout $103,950).
Not a bad weekend’s worth of sweat for those two customers.
Triple Play
A two-leg parlay isn’t that glamorous. But it’s reasonable, even if it generally won’t produce a six-figure payday. But a five-figure win on a $70 bet is nothing to sneeze at.
On March 8, a FanDuel Sportsbook customer wagered that amount on the Bulls’ Josh Giddey and the Kings’ Russell Westbrook to each record a triple-double.
Westbrook finished with 23 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists in Sacramento’s 126-110 victory. Giddey had 15 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists for Chicago.
At odds of +23011, or just beyond 230/1, the bettor banked $16,177.75.
Bet a Lot, Win a Little
It’s often said that death and taxes are the only certainties in life. Add to that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scoring at least 20 points every time he takes the court.
The Thunder star is now up to 128 consecutive games of 20 or more points.
Last week, Gilgeous-Alexander was tied for the record with Wilt Chamberlain, at 126 games of 20 or more. A DraftKings customer felt it was a slam dunk that Gilgeous-Alexander would get to 127 games on Thursday vs. the Celtics.
The odds were a hefty -1620, meaning it took a $1,620 bet to win $100. The bettor went 10 times beyond that, wagering $16,200.
It was a no-sweat bet. Gilgeous Alexander had 21 points midway through the third quarter and finished with 35 in Oklahoma City’s 104-102 home victory.
So the bettor pocketed $1,000 in profit (total payout $17,200). It might not seem like much, but it’s 6.2% ROI. Which is not bad for a three-hour investment.
Another NBA Payday
There were nine games on Thursday’s NBA slate. A Hard Rock Bet customer honed in on three of those games while crafting a $100 12-leg parlay of player props:
Spurs vs. Nuggets
- Nikola Jokić Over 13.5 rebounds -110
- Jokic Over 10.5 assists +100
Lakers vs. Bulls
- Luka Dončić Over 8.5 assists -110
- Dončić Over 7.5 rebounds -130
- LeBron James Over 4.5 rebounds -135
- James Over 6.5 Assists -105
- Austin Reaves Over 5.5 assists +100
- Reaves Over 3.5 rebounds -170
- Deandre Ayton Over 8.5 Rebounds -140
Thunder vs. Celtics
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Over 4.5 rebounds -145
- Gilgeous-Alexander Over 6.5 assists -145
- Chet Holmgren Over 8.5 rebounds -145
Run those prices through an odds calculator, and it spits out +91700 (917/1).
All 12 legs got there, giving the bettor a hefty $91,700 win.
Puck Luck
I can’t advocate for making 22-leg parlay bets. With even a five- or six-leg parlay, odds are stacked strongly in favor of the sportsbooks. So 22 legs massively enhance the bookmaker’s advantage.
But if you’re inclined to do that, then at least be realistic with your bet size. Ten bucks is about right.
On March 7, a Fanatics customer took two player props from each of 11 games — every game on the schedule that day — to create a $10, 22-leg parlay.
Add up all those odds, and you’ve got a massive +370030, or just beyond 3700/1. In other words, this probably ain’t cashing.
Yet it did. All 22 legs got there, as the bettor turned 10 bucks into $37,013. Fairly unbelievable.
Here’s Hoping You Had It
One of the more popular weekly props for PGA Tour events is whether there will be a hole-in-one. With 100 players or more teeing it up on any given weekend, and these guys being really good, the odds aren’t really that long.
But if you want more bang for your buck, then you can bet on a specific player to record an ace, rather than just taking the whole field.
Here’s hoping someone did that with Chad Ramey in The Players Championship. At DraftKings, Ramey was +8800 to have a hole-in-one, and he banged it in on the 13th hole of Sunday’s final round.
A $10 flier on that prop would’ve netted $880. If you got frisky and put a C-note on it, then you would’ve won $8,800. That’s some serious ROI.
