An American sports bettor has secured a monumental win thanks to an NFL upset.
A Florida bettor has pocketed $5.5 million after placing a four-leg same-game parlay on the Houston Texans versus Cincinnati Bengals game on Sunday. The matchup, which took place at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati, saw the Texans defeat the Bengals 30-27 in dramatic fashion.
Texans kick Matt Ammendola hit a game-winning field goal as time expired in the fourth quarter.
The unnamed bettor, who wagered $500,000 on the parlay at Hard Rock Bet, picked the Texans to beat the Bengals at +190 odds. The parlay also had Texans running back Devin Singletary to rush for more than 51.5 yards. The Florida Atlantic product would finish the game with 150 rushing yards and one touchdown, which also benefited the parlay’s leg of 45.5 points scored for the game.
One Florida bettor at @HardRockBet had a $500,000 four-leg SGP that won $5.5 MILLION on this Houston Texans game-winning FG.
— Ben Fawkes (@BFawkes22) November 12, 2023
The legs:
Devin Singletary OVER 51.5 rush yards ✅
Singletary anytime TD✅
CIN-HOU OVER 45.5✅
Texans ML✅pic.twitter.com/ZTI6MihIHn
The massive payout for Hard Rock comes less than a week after the sportsbook relaunched in Florida following nearly two years of shuttered operations in the Sunshine State. The Florida relaunch came after an appeals court reversed a ruling regarding a gaming compact with the Seminole Tribe. In 2021, exclusive rights to sports betting in Florida were granted to the tribe.
Immediate criticism
The reemergence of Hard Rock has also been met with backlash.
Last week, two Florida gaming firms filed a motion with the Supreme Court of Florida asking it to “immediately suspend the sports betting provisions” of state law. The firms — West Flagler Associates Ltd. and Bonita-Fort Myers Corp. — believe that Hard Rock’s statewide online wagering options violate federal and state law because they are taking place off of tribal lands.
Despite the blowback, Hard Rock continues to be a viable option for bettors. Last week, a bettor lost $1.5 million after placing a wager on a college football game between Kent State and Bowling Green. The bettor wagered on Kent State as a 10.5-point underdog on both the spread and the moneyline markets. Kent State would lose to Bowling Green with a final score of 49-19.
