Not his day

Prominent businessman and high-rolling sports bettor Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale has lost more than $3m wagering on college football. The Texas-based furniture store tycoon staked his money on Texas Christian University (TCU) beating the Georgia Bulldogs in Monday’s College Football Championship Game.

Bulldogs ended the game 65-7 victors

Defending champions Georgia went into the game as the strong favorite to beat the Horned Frogs. The Bulldogs ended the game 65-7 victors in a blowout result.

Mattress Mack spread his multimillion-dollar wager across different sportsbooks, including WynnBET, DraftKings, and Caesars Sportsbook. To bring awareness to his big bets, Mattress Mack even took part in a hype video released on Twitter:

Hedging his bets

Mack placed about $1m on TCU to win the fixture with a +13 points handicap. The remainder of the money went towards backing TCU on the moneyline. If all the bets were successful, McIngvale would have profited by about $8m.

As is typical with his big bets, Mack aimed to hedge any potential losses from the TCU wagers with a simultaneous promotion at his furniture store. Each customer who bought a qualifying mattress set worth at least $3,000 during the promotional period would get double their money back if TCU proved victorious in the big game.

A track record

Mattress Mack has a penchant for placing high-profile sports bets, typically featuring a team from Texas. His most noteworthy win came last year when he took home a record-breaking $75m after betting on the Houston Astros to win the MLB World Series. His various bets totaled $10m, with the average odds reaching +750.

$9.5m in losses on the Super Bowl

Throughout 2022, he appeared to lose more bets than he won, including $9.5m in losses on the Super Bowl. He is already looking to the year ahead, having placed multiple seven-figure wagers already on the Houston Cougars college basketball team winning this year’s NCAA Championship.