A risky wager may turn into a big prize for some gamblers.
Gambling on NCAA basketball is a billion dollar industry, and one which often produces crazy odds for gamblers. As David Purdum of ESPN.com reports, back in January, Las Vegas gave the Syracuse Orange minuscule – 1,000-1 odds for one week to win the NCAA tournament. At the time, Syracuse had a 10-7 record and didn’t exactly scream title contenders. Westgate SuperBook took in four bets on the odds totaling $135 for the Orange to win it all, including a $100 ticket which would pay more $100,100. Those wagers could pay off with Syracuse’s unlikely run.
The tenth-seeded Orange bounced back from early struggles this season and have gone on an unlikely NCAA tournament run. Syracuse made an epic comeback from a 16 point deficit yesterday, to beat top-seeded Virginia to continue their amazing March Madness journey to the Final Four. ESPN reports the Orange at one point were a 16-1 underdog to win yesterday’s game and had 14-1 odds in the first half – a wager which a better won $4900 after placing $350 on the outcome. Bets like that may seem outrageous, but the payoffs are huge, so winning is worth the occasional gamble.
If you’re trying to come up with a scenario where 1000-1 odds were cashed out, there hasn’t been one, as Westgate president Jay Kornegay told ESPN. Syracuse still has a challenging path to cash out the lucky fans smart enough to make a wager on their underdog run with a Final Four matchup Saturday against the top-seeded University of North Carolina.
[ESPN.com]
