Wager Wonderland salutes more than the big bettors of the online sports-betting world. Online parlay bets especially!
This installment details three major collections from gamblers betting less than 10 bucks. In two cases, they invested less than $5, turning what they’d spend for one cup of coffee into several thousand bucks.
That’s the magic of multi-leg parlays.
Gamblers gasp over Mattress Mack’s $3.46 million Super Bowl bet on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at DraftKings, or the PointsBet player who put $2,500 on the coin flip.
By the way… Mattress Mack won over $3 million!
But they relate more to a “Blue Collar Bob” or “Betty” in the gambling sense.
“I love reading about these people,” a FanDuel executive told us during the football season. “What’s especially interesting are the bettors who make a nice hit with just a little money. They don’t make the headlines, but it’s great for other bettors to see them hit like that.”
This particular online parlay bet is a DraftKings trifecta from late January and early February. Each reveal a unique strategy.
Hitting a Three
What seat-squirming, hand-wringing entertainment was this?
Check out this user’s $3 wager that became $6.986.22at +232800.
First, here’s the ticket, using an assortment of the spread and the over-under totals.
- LA Lakers/Atlanta Hawks Under 219
- LA Lakers -7
- Charlotte Hornets +7
- Charlotte Hornets/MIA Heat Over 216.5
- Minnesota Timberwolves +3.5
- Minnesota Timberwolves/CLE Cavaliers Under 219
- Chicago Bulls -3.5
- New York Knicks/ Bulls Under 218.5
- Houston Rockets -5
- Houston Rockets/Oklahoma City Thunder Over 224.5
- Milwaukee Bucks -9.5
- Milwaukee Bucks/Portland Trailblazers Over 235
The Strategy _ Picking five NBA games both against the spread and the over-under total. The bettor showed excellent NBA knowledge, with a mixture of favorites and dogs, overs and unders.
The Guts _ Laying points and taking an under. If you give points and take an over, you have hopes of outgunning the opposition. But if the team you like gets into a shootout, you can lose the under even if the team covers by 20.
The Sweat _ This wasn’t just beads of sweat. This could go down one’s face. There were two that needed a bucket inside of the last 15 seconds and one just before the buzzer.
The Lakers-Hawks battle was nip-and-tuck the whole way. With 1:40 left, Trae Young hit a three-pointer for Atlanta. That made the game 98-97 for Los Angeles. If you hold a -7 ticket at that point, that ship has probably sailed.
But this one got BIG help, as in Lebron James scoring nine points in the final 1:15. When does that happen?
James hit a three-pointer and four free throws, putting the Lakers up 105-97. The ticket now was a winner. And then comes an Atlanta bucket with 16 seconds to go. The ticket is a loser.
But the Hawks decided to foul James, who canned two free throws with 14 seconds to go and the Lakers “hung on” for the bettor in a game they had already put away.
Getting nine points from one player in 1:15 is a betting miracle. In casino table-game parlance, they’d consider that as “James getting a phone call” from a gambler in need.
And the James miracle may have been the easier of the two winning scenarios.
The other close shave was Minnesota losing to Cleveland by two points when it was getting 3.5.
The T-Wolves trailed by four points until Naz Reid collected a bucket with 0.3 seconds left. Or maybe that’s the incomparable Naz Reid. The basket turned defeat into victory in this game and saved a ticket worth almost 7K.
The Duce Yields Juice
Similar strategy. Make two bets on five different games. If the logic is right with one, you’ll probably hit both.
And this player did.
Notable Bet
A user put down a $2 10-leg parlay across NHL & NBA – the parlay was at +53360 when it was placed, and paid out over $1000 when all 10 hit. Here were their picks. This combines the moneyline, over-under and a spread pick.
- Denver Nuggets ML
- Utah Jazz vs. Nuggets over 221 points
- Washington Wizards +6
- Brooklyn Nets vs. Wizards over 245.5 points
- Philadelphia 76ers ML
- 76ers vs. Pacers over 223
- Chicago Blackhawks ML
- Columbus Blue Jackets vs. Blackhawks under 5.5 goals
- Edmonton Oilers ML
- Ottawa Senators vs. Oilers over 6.5 goals
The Nuggets thumped the Utah Jazz 128-117. Check off the moneyline and the over 221.
The Wizards were beaten by the Brooklyn Nets in the game of the year for the NBA. They took advantage of the points in a 149-146 loss and the over 245.5 romped in a breeze.
The Sixers took care of the Indianapolis Pacers 119-110 and both teams took care of the bettor by sliding just above the 223-number needed for the over-under.
The Blackhawks defeated the St. Louis Blues 3-1 and the teams combined for the under 5.5.
The Oilers and the Senators made this an easy finale. They had eight goals after the first period, enough to tuck the over bet away. Edmonton led 5-3 after the first frame and won it 8-5.
The 10 Count
Check out this user’s NHL Parlay that started with $10 and turned into $14,298.50 at + 144900 odds. This was a great combo of NHL moneyline and the -1.5 goal spreads.
There was the appropriate degree of sweat, as one game went to overtime and another a shootout. How would you like to have nearly 15 G’s riding on a shootout?
You don’t mind if it comes in.
Bet Details :
- New York Rangers ML
- Columbus Blue Jackets ML
- Toronto Maple Leafs ML
- Philadelphia Flyers ML
- Vancouver Canucks ML
- Arizona Coyotes ML
- Montreal Canadiens -1.5
- Washington Capitals +1.5
- Minnesota Wild -1.5
- Dallas Stars. -1.5
- Colorado Avalanche -1.5
The Tough Ones:
The Rangers beat the Sabres in overtime.
The Blue Jackets needed a shootout to topple the Panthers 3-2.
The Maple Leafs slipped past the beat Oilers 4-3
The Coyotes nipped the Anaheim Ducks 3-2
The Canadiens had just enough, topping the Calgary Flames 4-2 at -1.5.
Throughout the books and online, there are thousands upon thousands of bets being made every week.
Most parlay bets fail, because they are too hard.
Those which succeed reveal two things: a good angle and some good luck.
