Houston furniture store owner has millions riding on Astros World Series win
Jim McIngvale could win nearly $36 million if the team wins
Houston furniture store owner makes big World Series bet
Gallery Furniture owner Jim McIngvale could win nearly $36 million if the Houston Astros win the World Series.
A Texas furniture store owner known as "Mattress Mack" could receive a historic betting payout if the Houston Astros win the World Series, saying it is the biggest bet he has ever made and the largest in sports betting history.
"As far as I know it’s the largest legal sports wager on a futures bet ever made in the United States," Gallery Furniture owner Jim McIngvale told "Varney & Co." on Tuesday.
If the team wins, McIngvale will receive a historic payout of nearly $36 million.
The Houston Astros will face the Atlanta Braves in the World Series.
The two teams proved to be the best in the American and National Leagues respectively and since the Astros have a better record (95-67) than the Braves (88-73), they will have the home-field advantage.
"We did a promotion and said if you buy a Tempur-Pedic Mattress $3000 or better and the Astros win the World Series in 2021, you get your money back," McIngvale told host Stuart Varney.
"On June the 10th, I bet $2 million with Caesars to win $20 million at 10 to 1, I bet $1 million with FanDuel at 10 to 1 to win $10 million, I bet $250,000 with DraftKings at 16 to 1 to win $4 million and I bet $100,000 at Score [theScore Bet] at 16 to 1 to win $1.6 million," he explained. "So if the Astros win the World Series I’ll collect $36 million to pay back our great customers."
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DKNG | DRAFTKINGS INC. | 43.09 | -0.46 | -1.06% |
| PDYPY | NO DATA AVAILABLE | - | - | - |
| CZR | CAESARS ENTERTAINMENT INC. | 37.60 | +0.04 | +0.11% |
| SCR | NO DATA AVAILABLE | - | - | - |
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"I will tell you what - today we are selling mattresses like hotcakes, never seen anything like it," McIngvale continued.
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"We are down here in Houston saying, ‘Go Astros,’" he added.
McIngvale told Varney that the biggest bet he ever won "was at the Super Bowl last year when [Tom] Brady and the [Milwaukee] Bucks won, that was $3.6 million."
He explained that the biggest bet he ever lost "was when the Astros lost in 2019 to the Washington Nationals. That was about $19 million."
"So I won and lost a lot of different bets," McIngvale continued.
Varney asked McIngvale if he has ever been asked if he has a gambling problem.
"My wife tells me I have a gambling problem all the time," he responded. "I told her I have a promotion problem."
"I like to run promotions, get the customers involved, and sell more furniture," he continued.
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"We’ll see what happens in the next week or so, but should be very exciting to watch on FOX," he added.
Game 1 of the World Series is Tuesday. If the best-of-seven Series goes at least six games, the Astros and Braves will be playing into November.
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Fox News’ Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report.