2025 March Madness Big Bets report: Bettor stands to make $900k with Florida win

Patrick Everson

FOX Sports Betting Analyst

March Madness odds are obviously huge for the games themselves. And not just on the games themselves.

Many bettors also tried to predict the future, wagering on March Madness championship odds. And some of those bettors went the full Nostradamus and put in their predictions almost a year ago.

Such is the case with a Hard Rock Bet customer, who was on the brink of turning five bucks into a massive six-figure payday, until Houston’s shocking comeback knocked out Duke Saturday night in the Final Four.

Read on for more on that play and other notable NCAA Tournament bets.

Down Goes Duke

On May 12, 2024, before the Tennessee baseball team won the College World Series, a prescient bettor in Jacksonville, Fla., put together this five-team futures parlay at Hard Rock Bet:

Tennessee +650 to win the CWS
Los Angeles Dodgers +300 to win the World Series
Ohio State +450 to win the College Football Playoff
Philadelphia Eagles +1600 to win the Super Bowl
Duke +1100 to win March Madness

Add that all up, and you’ve got massive odds of +3365900 — or, in somewhat more digestible terms, 33,659/1. The bettor — who requested anonymity, but can be found on X (@thousandollabil) — had been waiting around for that last leg since Feb. 9, when the Eagles thumped the Kansas City Chiefs 40-22 in Super Bowl 59.

Throughout March Madness, Duke was the favorite to win the national title. On Saturday night, Duke was a 4.5-point favorite against Houston and led 59-45 midway through the second half.

With 1:26 remaining, Duke was still up 66-59. Then Houston did the unthinkable, embarking on an 11-1 run to end the game and secure a stunning 70-67 victory.

Thankfully, the bettor had already locked in a significant profit on his $5 investment. Before Duke met Alabama in the Elite 8, he sold a 50% stake in his bet, via PropSwap, which is a secondary-market service.

Think StubHub, but for sports bets.

That stake sold for $20,250.

“By effectively selling half of it and keeping the other half, I could split the baby,” the bettor said Sunday evening. “That made it so I could sleep at night, and made it so that [Saturday] night wouldn’t be as devastating.”

Another aspect that made Duke’s loss less devastating: The bettor is a Florida alum, and he watches a lot of college basketball. He’s a Florida fan who knew the Gators were very good long before most of us did.

So he’s also made a few futures bets that’ll cash if Florida beats Houston — about $700 in bets for a profit of $6,300.

“I’d be a little more upset with the Duke loss if it was anybody but Florida,” he said, while recognizing his good fortune of coming so close to a huge payday. “I’ll never hit another one again, but I won’t stop trying.”

Thanks to Duke getting most of the way, and his timely move to sell a stake, he’s got some seed money to keep trying.

More Parlay Pain

Back during football season, a FanDuel Sportsbook customer was prescient enough to string together this $85 parlay:

Ohio State +300 to win the College Football Playoff
Philadelphia Eagles +1000 to win the Super Bowl
Duke +1200 to win March Madness

Add those three up, and you’ve got odds of +57100, or in more digestible terms, 571/1. All the bettor needed was two more wins from championship favorite Duke.

But alas, as noted above, the Blue Devils tumbled to Houston. And so too did that parlay, which would’ve turned a profit of $48,535 with a Duke title.

Let’s hope the bettor hedged in some form or fashion and still locked in a profit.

100 Grand Here, 100 Grand There on Gators

No. 1 seed Florida continued its quest for a national title. In Saturday’s opening Final Four game, the Gators trailed fellow No. 1 seed Auburn 46-38 at halftime.

But Florida quickly erased that lead in the second half and ultimately held on for a 79-73 victory.

With Duke eliminated, BetMGM has Florida the -118 favorite to cut down the nets Monday night in San Antonio. That’s just barely ahead of Houston, which is -102.

But earlier this month, a BetMGM customer got notably better odds on Florida, putting $100,000 on the Gators +900.

If Florida’s 11-game win streak becomes a 12-game win streak, then that bettor will pocket a massive profit of $900,000, for a total payout of $1 million.

At Caesars Sports, during the second round of the tournament, another $100,000 bet landed on Florida, at +340. So that ticket stands to profit $340,000 (total payout $440,000), if the Gators lift the trophy.

Hail Caesars

Caesars Sports also has a customer looking to cash out big on March Madness futures bets.

Way back on June 27, a customer put $10,000 on Houston +2200. Now, Caesars has Houston as the slim -105 underdog to win the title, with Florida the -115 favorite.

If the Cougars cut down the nets on Monday night, then the customer profits a healthy $220,000 (total payout $230,000).

A side note on Houston: Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale is an avid fan of all Houston-based sports teams. It was thought that he might drop a million or more on the Cougars, as well. But to this point, a Mattress Mack major wager hasn’t materialized.

Built for the Futures

Along with those aforementioned hefty potential payouts, there are countless more straight bets on championship futures in March Madness odds. DraftKings Sportsbook is sitting on a ticket that pays out well into five figures:

$4,000 Florida +1500, to win $60,000 (total payout $64,000)

Hard Rock Bet took a few notable futures bets earlier in the season, at long odds. But only one of those wagers survived to reach the March Madness championship game: a $250 play on Florida +6100.

If this bet hits, then the customer profits $15,250 (total payout $15,500).

Patrick Everson is a sports betting analyst for FOX Sports and senior reporter for VegasInsider.com. He is a distinguished journalist in the national sports betting space. He’s based in Las Vegas, where he enjoys golfing in 110-degree heat. Follow him on Twitter: @PatrickE_Vegas.

Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!