A London-based bettor won more than $1.36 million this week on a $15.50 bet, and it all came down to a 35-1 long shot battling in one of the longest playoffs in PGA Tour history.
The bet — a six-leg parlay or accumulator as they are known in the United Kingdom — was placed June 22 and paid out at 90,396-1 odds, according to Betfair, a U.K.-based online sportsbook and betting exchange. It featured two soccer matches in Euro 2020 and four outright winners in the weekend’s golf tournaments.
The legs of the parlay and odds were:
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Croatia to defeat Scotland at +140.
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England to defeat Czech Republic at -182.
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Steve Stricker to win the Bridegstone Senior Players Championship at +500.
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Nelly Korda to win the KPMG Womens PGA Championship at +1,400.
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Viktor Hovland to win the BMW International Open at +650.
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Harris English to win the Travelers Championship at +3,500.
“I was sure that Hovland, Korda and Steve Stricker were good bets,” the unidentified bettor told Betfair. “But I was a little unsure on Harris English.”
The first five legs of the parlay had already hit before English, a 35-1 long shot to win the tournament, made a 28-foot putt on the 18th hole Sunday that eventually put him in a playoff against Kramer Hickock. After both golfers made seven straight pars to open the playoff, English drained a 16-foot birdie putt to win the tournament.
The eight-hole playoff was the longest playoff in a PGA Tour event in nine years and tied for the longest since 1949. The tournament ended after 1 a.m., London-time. English won $1,368,000 and helped the bettor win £1,039,554, which translates to roughly the same amount of English’s haul in U.S. dollars.
“When he won the playoff, I was very relieved. I thought he had lost it after some wayward tee shots on the 18th hole,” the bettor told Betfair in a company release.
“I thought I was going to have a heart attack when the winning putt went in. I couldn’t believe it.”