Houston Astros’ Fan Makes a Texas-Sized Bet on The 2019 World Series
They say that everything is bigger in Texas. Well one big-time Houston Astros’ fan is banking heavily on his team. As reported by The Sun Herald, Jim McIngvale just placed a historic sports bet in a Mississippi casino.
Texas businessman “Mattress Mack”, Bets $3.5 Million At Mississippi Casino
Known as “Mattress Mack”, the Texas businessman bet $3.5 million that Houston will win this year’s MLB World Series. This is the biggest single bet in Mississippi since sports betting first became legal. The bet was placed in the sportsbook of the Scarlet Pearl Casino in D’Iberville. He walked in and opened a silver case containing the $3.5 million in cash.
The casino’s sportsbook is operated by DraftKings. LuAnn Pappas is the CEO of Scarlet Pearl and her comment was: “It’s the biggest bet in the state of Mississippi. It’s a record since sports betting went live in the state Aug. 1, 2018.”
Mattress Mack was dressed in his bright orange No. 2 Astros jersey. He was also donning a white Astros hat noting the fact they were AL West Division Champions this season. He went on to thank both the Scarlet Pearl and Draft Kings for booking the bet.
He previously made it known that he wanted to bet this amount on his favorite team. He added that, “and no other gaming company sportsbook in the world has come forward to take the wager.”
Scarlet Pearl’s Sportsbook Is Draftkings
The sportsbook at the Scarlet Pearl was the first DraftKings retail venture in the US sports betting market. Both DraftKings and the Scarlet Pearl will cover the $3.5 million bet. Casino owners, Bob and Delores Granier were present when the bet was placed. So was Matt Kalish as the co-founder and COO of DraftKings.
Mr. McIngvale has a chance to more than double his bet to win $7.7 million if Houston wins it all. The total payout by the casino would be $11.2 million counting the original wager. DraftKings had posted betting odds of +200 for the Astros as the favorites to win the MLB title.
Betting On Houston To Win The World Series
The sportsbook posted the following blurb on betting Houston to win it all this season: “When you roll out a starting pitching staff that includes Justin Verlander, Gerrit Cole and Zack Greinke, you’re in pretty decent shape. Add in an offense that leads the league in WAR, and you’d be foolish to bet against them.”
The 68-year old Texas businessman is anything but foolish. He has built a thriving network of Gallery Furniture stores in the Houston area. He has also gained a reputation for staging a few outlandish promotions over the years. His quote on the bet added: “All of us in Houston believe in the Astros. If the Astros win a lot of customers will get free mattresses.”
A current promotion tied to the bet is refunds of more than $3,000 on recent mattress purchases. A report on this offer originally was posted in the Houston Chronicle. The last time Houston won the World Series was just two years ago in 2017. McIngvale mentioned that the same mattress promotion cost him close to $10 million. He is expecting that figure to climb based on sales if Houston wins again.
• Source: Mississippi Coast casino is taking a $3.5 million bet on World Series from ‘Mattress Mack’ From Sunherald.com On October 1, 2019.
