- Wisconsin man’s $85,000 bet on Tiger turned into $1.2 million.
- Tiger hasn’t won a major tournament in 11 years and his odds were 14-1.
- This was the very first bet made by James Adducci.
MADISON, Wis. – A man from Wisconsin wagered $85,000 in his very first sports bet on Tiger Woods to win the Masters and he won $1.2 million.
A Little About James
James Adducci is the lucky man who won $1.2 million by placing a bet on Tiger. He is from Wisconsin and he is a day trader. One of his investments was losing so he decided to cash out on it and use the money to bet on Tiger. Adducci said that this was his first ever bet he made on a sports game.
Tiger Woods has not won the masters in over 14 years. He hasn’t even won a major tournament in 11 years. His odds were 14-1 and Adducci didn’t even know the odds on Tiger. The Las Vegas sportsbooks are not allowed to disclose the odds on someone over the phone. The reason why Adducci was so confident that Tiger was going to win is because Tiger’s kids were going to watch the tournament.
“In that moment that he won, and I won, what was the most special for me, and it’s why I placed the bet in the first place, was just seeing him share that victory with his kids,” said Adducci.
William Hill Takes The Bet
Adducci was surprised when he first arrived in Las Vegas. He went to two different sportsbooks but neither took his bet. He did not realize that the bet he was making was very large in terms of golf bets.
He eventually found a sportsbook that would take his bet. The SLS Las Vegas Hotel and Casino was the sportsbook that took the $85,000 on Tiger Woods. The sportsbook is operated by William Hill, a sportsbook provider. Staff had to call into headquarters to see if they were allowed to take such a large bet. CEO of William Hill US Joe Asher was happy to authorize the bet.
“This is a story for the ages. Tiger climbs back to the top, and a guy sports betting in Wisconsin, on his first sports bet ever, wins over $1 million betting on him,” said Asher.
The final payout was $1.19 million for the bet, which totaled the Adducci’s winnings to $1.275 million. It seems like Adducci really enjoyed winning his bet because he is now considering using his winnings to place more sports bets in the future.