Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale is many things: a respected businessman of Gallery Furniture fame, philanthropist, Houston Astros superfan, veteran gambler, and – after his beloved Major League Baseball team won the 2022 World Series – US$75 million (AU$116 million) richer.
Back in May, the 71-year-old placed an initial bet of US$3 million (AU$4.7 million) on the Astros to win this year’s championship at 10-1 odds. As the seasons progressed, he’d place further bets right up until the playoffs, eventually totalling around US$10 million (AU$15.5 million). Adjusted combined odds: 7.5-1.
“I just have what you might call a high tolerance for risk. Damon Runyon said, ‘All horse players die broke.’ And I know I shouldn’t bet with my heart, but it’s hard not to, and it’s a lot more fun,” said Jim McIngvale.
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“I just get bored to death with stability, which is why I guess I like all of these big bets… I thrive on chaos.”
In Game 6, the Astros would defeat the Philadelphia Phillies by 4-1, closing out the series with four games to Phillies’ two, and earning McIngvale what is believed to be the largest payout in (legal) sports betting history. The cherry on top? Old Mack had the honour of throwing the ceremonial first pitch before H-Town sealed the deal.
“What can we say? We just wrote the biggest cheque in sports betting history to Mattress Mack for $30 million,” said Ken Fuchs, Chief Operating Officer for Caesars Digital – the sportsbook which McIngvale placed the original bet.
“Would we do it all again? You bet. While Mack may have won this round on the field, we’re proud of how we teamed up to support first responders and military veterans in Houston, [Philadelphia], and Atlantic City.”
“And to Mack – we tip our Astros cap – and remind him that he can now support his Texans and Rockets… both attractively priced at +100,000 to win a championship. The Astros are also currently +550 to win next year’s Fall Classic.”
Despite all this, Mattress Mack won’t be pocketing much of it for himself given how he regularly uses bet winning to cover promotions at his furniture chain. This year, for example, the great man offered any customer who spent more than US$3,000 (AU$4,660) double their money back if the Astros won the title.
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“Whatever we can do to make people’s lives better, even if it’s through this magical game of baseball, we will,” Jim McIngvale told Fox 26 this past weekend.
And like any seasoned punter, for every headline-making success, there’s a handful of rather painful losses. During Super Bowl LVI, he lost US$9.5 million (AU$14.7 million) backing the Joe Burrow-led Cincinnati Bengals; but would go on to sell US$20 million (AU$31 million) worth of furniture with a promotion based around the wager. Bonus: over in the US, gambling losses are tax deductible.
McIngvale added: “It’s definitely a win-win. These promotions just bring the brand to life and give us a ton of brand equity that we wouldn’t have otherwise. The customers love it so they’re totally engaged and talk about it for years. Because it runs all season long it probably ups the number of people following the Astros, too, because now they have a real vested interest in the team.”
At the time of this writing, Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale reportedly has a net worth of US$300 million (AU$466 million).
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