- Mattress Mack made the inaugural bet at the Caesars Sportsbook at Horseshoe Lake Charles last Monday.
- The bet was a $1 million wager on the Houston Cougars to win March Madness at 8-1 odds.
- Mattress Mack won a record $75 million last month when the Houston Astros won the 2022 World Series.
Houston furniture shop owner Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale was on hand at the opening of Horseshoe Lake Charles and was given the privilege to make the first-ever bet at that casino’s brand new Caesars Sportsbook.
While most ceremonial bets are in token amounts, Mattress Mack stayed true to his reputation as a big-time sports bettor. And expected, he wagered on one of his hometown teams.
Mattress Mack has just placed the first bet at the newest @CaesarsSports at @HorseshoeLC
$1 MILLION on Houston to win the NCAA Championship at 8-1 odds 🤯🤯pic.twitter.com/hG9RzA5BE6
— Action Network (@ActionNetworkHQ) December 12, 2022
Houston Cougars Favored to Win March Madness
Mack placed a $1 million cash bet on the Houston Cougars to win the 2023 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at 8-1 odds. The no. 5 ranked Cougars are the current odds-on favorites to win the 2023 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament and are the only team with odds shorter than +1000 at the moment. Houston’s odds immediately shortened to +600 after Mattress Mack’s bet.
The Cougars remain on top of the odds boards at the top NCAAB sportsbooks despite suffering their first loss of the season to Alabama last Saturday. The Crimson Tide rallied from a 15-point deficit to stun the Cougars 71-65 as +14.5 point spread underdogs. Houston bounced back with a 74-46 win over the North Carolina A&T Aggies in their most recent game.
Purdue unseated Houston from the top of the AP Polls on Monday with Virginia and UConn also rising to no. 2 and no. 3, respectively. Meanwhile, giant-killer Alabama is 4th in the latest NCAAB rankings. The Cougars have not won the NCAA men’s basketball championship in its history. They made it to the Final Four two seasons ago but were ousted in the Elite Eight last season.
Mattress Mack Wins Largest Payout in U.S. Legal Sports Betting History
It was just over a month ago when Mattress Mack collected the largest payout in U.S. legal sports betting history when the Houston Astros won the 2022 World Series. The Houston-based businessman won a total of $75 million from a total of $10 million worth of futures bets on the Astros.
The largest of those bets was a $3 million wager at 10-1 odds made via the Caesars Sportsbook App while Mack was in Louisiana. Caesars Sportsbook ended up writing the biggest check in U.S. legal sports betting history at $30 million.
Mattress Mack’s $1 million bet at Horseshoe Lake Charles wasn’t his first on the Cougars for this season. In November, he placed $500K on Houston at 9-1 odds via BetMGM and then doubled down with a $1 million bet via DraftKings Sportsbook. Mack also wagered $500k on the Cougars at 9-1 odds via Barstool Sportsbook days after making his first two bets.
Horseshoe Lake Charles Opened last Monday
Caesars debuted the brand new Horseshoe Lake Charles at noon on Monday. The former Isle of Capri was the first casino given the approval to move to land by the Louisiana Gaming Control Board in 2019. After delays due to COVID-19 and Hurricane Laura, the new land-based location is finally open to the public.
Horseshoe Lake Charles boasts of a 60,000 square foot property that features 1,000 slot machines and table games, a 253-room hotel, a World Series of Poker poker room, and course, the retail Caesars Sportsbook where Mattress Mack was the special guest .
The Lake Charles sportsbook is a full-service betting shop with 3 staffed betting windows, 8 self-service betting kiosks, 52 seats, 43 high-definition TV screens, and bar service from Brews Brothers.
