Ten-leg parlays or more are the sports betting equivalent of the New York State Lottery slogan, “Hey, You Never Know.”
Of course, to a much greater extent, sports bettors control their own destiny, even with long-shot exotics. Rarely do big-payout parlays hit and they favor the house in the first place, which is why we call playing long-shot parlays among the most common “beginner” mistakes.
Still, for many recreational players, a long parlay ticket is just good entertainment and an expected strikethrough on the ledger. And, well, you never know!
You can use a parlay calculator to show how quickly your odds change as you add more legs to a parlay, and check out the ParlayIQ tool at Scores and Odds to help craft SGPs with PlusEV legs. (More information on that tool here.) So with some mild jealousy and a lot of admiration, let’s explore some of the luckiest, craziest, odds-defying multi-leg parlays that cashed.
Parlay Bets Paying Big: Longshot NFL Parlay Bets and Others That Struck for Some Awesome Paydays
260,567-1
When you see a huge number like +26056700 on a betslip, that number is based on a $100 bet. In other words, if you take a 4/1 moneyline underdog, the number on your betslip is +400, meaning you get $400 if you bet $100. So a betslip with +26056700 means that you would win over $26 MILLION on a $100 bet. Of course, it also means the chances of you winning that bet are 260,567 to 1. That didn’t deter three different people from putting 50 cents down on a 6-leg first basket parlay that ended up winning and paying out over $130k to each of them. Check out this remarkable bet slip.:
The best thing you've seen in 2022..
THREE different customers in PA placed this first basket scorer parlay last night to turn $0.50 into over $130k 🤯 pic.twitter.com/YDNVWOlaIW
— FanDuel Sportsbook (@FDSportsbook) January 13, 2022
About 150,000-1
The 2021 Ryder Cup ended up being a rout for the Americans, who easily dismissed their European competitors. After the first day, the result was never in doubt, but that didn’t stop this bettor from trying to pick the exact outcomes of all 12 Sunday matches. The resulting 12-leg parlay will go down in history as one of the most impressive parlay picks ever. Out of the 12 Sunday matches, 6 favorites won, 4 underdogs won, and two ended in a tie. This person picked them all, including the two ties! That might be the most impressive part of this impossible parlay that turned $8 into $966,290.
90,396-1
Anyone who has ever bet on golf can tell you that picking an outright winner is TOUGH. There are so many factors and variables that even an experienced handicapper only hits a few outright winners each year. Picking four in the same week would seem to be virtually impossible. Add to that same bet two major championship soccer match wins and any winner would have an amazing story to tell. Betfair, a European sportsbook operator, reported in June 2021 that a UK-based bettor did just that, winning a six-leg parlay by picking four golf tournament winners and two soccer game-winners.
🤑 A Betfair punter from London has become a millionaire – from a £11.50 acca!
👏 He's won a HUGE £1,039,544 from a 90,396/1 six-fold.
😓 Harris English made him sweat, winning on the 8th play-off hole after 1am! pic.twitter.com/895GlycQGM
— Betfair (@Betfair) June 29, 2021
Here are the bet details:
- Croatia to defeat Scotland
- England to defeat the Czech Republic
- Steve Stricker to win the Bridgestone Senior Players Championship
- Nelly Korda to win the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship
- Viktor Hovland to win the BMW International Open
- Harris English to win the Travelers Championship (36/1!)
Over 90,000 to 1 odds! The bettor put $15.50 down and won $1.36 million! There aren’t enough exclamation points to emphasize how impressive this parlay actually is.
74,087-1
A NASCAR bettor on FanDuel Sportsbook turned $13.49 into nearly $1 million with an improbable 4-leg parlay!
𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐘 𝐖𝐎𝐍 𝐍𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐋𝐘 $𝟏 𝐌𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐎𝐍 🤯🤯🤯
This bettor took $13 and a dream and came out with one of the biggest wins I've ever seen.
Our finance department is in shambles 😅 pic.twitter.com/XoSkJOKpat
— FanDuel Sportsbook (@FDSportsbook) August 28, 2022
The co*ke Zero Sugar 400 took place on August 28 in Daytona International Speedway.
Daytona is usually one of the tougher tracks to bet on – the speedway is fast, chaotic, and there are seemingly no guarantees when the race starts.
This race wasn’t any different as nearly half the field wrecked out or didn’t finish before Austin Dillon logged his victory.
With many of the sport’s top racers in the wreck, Cody Ware, B.J. McLeod, Landon Cassill, and David Ragan all wound up finishing in the top 10.
31,847-1
A sports bettor in New York turned a $6.90 16-team parlay ticket into $219,746.19 at Caesars Sportsbook.
🚨 HUGE PARLAY WIN 🚨
$6.90 ➡️ $219,746.19
This New York bettor cashed big time on this EPIC 16-leg parlay 🤯 pic.twitter.com/0Ql0MHcD4i
— Caesars Sportsbook (@CaesarsSports) May 5, 2022
The New York state bettor picked the moneyline on nine baseball games and a run line, and had four NHL playoff plays and an additional two NBA playoff games. He had six underdogs on his card. As one could imagine, the bettor had to sweat out several plays:
- Tampa Bay Rays (-120) over Oakland A’s, 3-0
- Texas Rangers (+160) over Philadelphia Phillies, 2-1 F/10
- Cleveland Guardians (+120) over San Diego Padres, 6-5 F/10
- Chicago White Sox (-150) over Chicago Cubs, 4-3
- Baltimore Orioles (+115) over Minnesota Twins, 9-4
- Los Angeles Angels (+115) over Boston Red Sox, 10-5 F/10
- Toronto Blue Jays (+130) over New York Yankees, 2-1
- Colorado Rockies (-150) over Washington Nationals, 5-2
- Los Angeles Dodgers (-160) over San Francisco Giants, 9-1
- Milwaukee Brewers (-1.5 at -135) over Cincinnati Reds, 18-4
- Carolina Hurricanes (-120) over Boston Bruins, 5-2
- Minnesota Wild (-140) over St. Louis Blues, 6-2
- Edmonton Oilers (-210) over Los Angeles Kings, 6-0
- Tampa Bay Lightning (+115) over Toronto Maple Leafs, 5-3
- Miami Heat (-8 at -110) over Philadelphia Sixers, 119-103
- Phoenix Suns (-6 at -110) over Dallas Mavericks, 129-109
This parlay equates to approximately 31,847 to 1 odds.
20,000-1
During the 2015 NFL season, novice sports bettor Tayla Polia won a 15-leg NFL parlay (above), according toCBS Sports. Polia beat 20,000-to-1 odds when she cashed in her $5 ticket for a $100,005 payday. She successfully called 14 NFL games against the spread and nailed one “over” as well (Broncos-Steelers combined for 61 points).
Polia initially thought she had lost her bet when the New York Giants fell to the Carolina Panthers by three. Fortunately for her, she had taken the spread — Giants +5. The closest game on the ticket ended up involving the Steelers, who beat the Broncos 34-27 in that shootout. The spread was Steelers -6.
12,384-1
Most bettors will never hit a 12000-1 long shot over the course of their entire sports betting career, but a new DraftKings user achieved this very feat on their first bet! When you look at the details of the 9-leg bet, it’s mind-blowing to see how many dominos had to fall in place to hit this near $25,000 payday.
Bet Details:
- Dolphins ML
- Colts -3
- Saints to win by 1-6 points
- Lions to win by 1-6 points
- Vikings to win by 1-6 points
- Browns to win by 1-6 points
- Aaron Rodgers Over 2.5 TD Passes
- Drew Lock Over 1.5 TD Passes
- Derek Carr Over 259.5 Passing Yards
It goes without saying thatNBD this bettor will be chasing that feeling for some time to come.
7,993.5-1
Betting the under is a good contrarian play because everyone wants more scoring. Rooting for less scoring seems un-American, but it can be a good bet because sometimes the over/under can be mispriced. This bettor used the uncertain pricing of college football’s week 1 schedule to win an amazing 14-leg parlay, betting only the under. He or she had to wait until Monday night’s primetime Louisville-Ole Miss matchup to see if their parlay would hit, and the word on Twitter was that the person did not hedge their bet at all. A bold move that paid off.
On the cusp of hitting a 14-leg CFB parlay at +799357, nbd 😏
This WynnBET player is ONE leg away from turning $10 into $79,935.70
Does Lou vs. Ole Miss stay UNDER 75.5 total points??
Share your answer below‼️ pic.twitter.com/FhsN7Ud2Dn
— WynnBET (@WynnBET) September 6, 2021
798-1
Over the 2020 Thanksgiving weekend, one FanDuel bettor turned $1 into nearly $800 with an “Anytime TD Scorer” parlay spread over six different games.
This isn’t the first time Rodgers was involved in a last-second Hail Mary miracle. Back in 2015, as a member of the Packers, Rodgers caught a 61 yard Hail Mary pass that capped off the largest comeback in Packers history. A controversial facemask penalty gave the Packers one more play, leading to the Rodgers reception, which gave the Packers a 27-23 victory.
354-1
Nine CBB picks, nine CBB winners.
👀 $20 parlay wins $7,090 👀 pic.twitter.com/ruIVnr17rv
— BetRivers Sportsbook (@BetRivers) December 2, 2020
After what seemed like a lifetime of waiting, in late 2020 bettors were very excited to get some bets in on college basketball again. One BetRivers user turned $20 into nearly $7100 after hitting a 9-leg parlay that mixed spreads and totals bets.
During normal years, college basketball can be so unpredictable early in the season with new incoming freshmen being relative unknowns. This parlay is especially impressive, as the games were played in 2020 during the first full weekend of games after a long, long break thanks to the COVID-19 lockdown.
415-1
Same-game parlays have become all the rage on FanDuel and other sportsbooks, for good reason. The exciting betting option allows users to put together a story of an individual game, and if the stars align that day, a huge payday could be in store. All the sweats of a multi-leg parlay can be combined into one football game.
This FanDuel bettor had a lot of faith in the 2020 Eagles-Packers NFL game turning into a high-scoring affair with big games from both QBs.
- Green Bay -7.5
- Jalen Raegor to score a TD
- Aaron Jones to score a TD
- Robert Tonyan Jr. to score a TD
- Aaron Rodgers over 283.5 passing yards
- Dallas Goedert over 41.5 receiving yards
- Carson Wentz over 16.5 rushing yards
The $41,000 payday was secured on this insane 77 yard Aaron Jones run with just over two minutes left in the game.
400-1
The 2018 Super Bowl certainly did not lack excitement as Nick Foles and the Philadelphia Eagles rolled past the New England Patriots to secure the Eagles’ first Super Bowl victory.
Foles, the Eagles, and people who attended the parade and got the opportunity to see Jason Kelce’s legendary celebratory addressweren’t the only winners. An unnamed William Hill bettor beat the house with this 9-leg Super Bowl special parlay:
Here is a $15 9-Leg #ParlayCard that cashed for $6,000 at the William Hill Sports Book inside @winnemuccainn when #FlyEaglesFly won #SB52
— William Hill US (@WilliamHillUS) February 5, 2018
The ticket cost $15, and was cashed in for $6,000. The bet included mostly prop bets, in which the bettor foresaw a defenseless shootout speckled by odds numbers. The final score of 41-33 meant both sides finished with an odd-numbered point total, sealing the deal.
232-1
Baseball is one of the most unpredictable sports to wager on. There is value to be had, but the season is an absolute slog, great pitchers have bad days, bloopers find empty spaces, and on and on. This lucky bettor took four MLB sides and on the same games, four totals — all unders.
$500 8-leg MLB parlay hits @WilliamHillUS; pays $115,971. h/t @MikeGrodsky pic.twitter.com/N05xmlFvwT
— David Payne Purdum (@DavidPurdum) July 7, 2015
Jon Niese and the New York Mets shut out the San Francisco Giants 3-0. Buehrle and Sale both pitched complete games in a 4-2 Chicago White Sox victory. St. Louis and Chicago went scoreless until the 7th inning when Cardinals’ bats woke up and worked the Cubs bullpen in a 6-0 win.
And the Minnesota Twins and Baltimore Orioles actually got knotted at 2-2 and went into extra innings — always cause for concern. But in the bottom of the 10th, Twins second baseman Brian Dozier took Tommy Hunter deep for a game-winning two-run homer. This bettor walked away with $115,971 on a $500 wager.
207-1
This is insane 🤯
All D/ST any time TD parlay cashes for a cool $1K
(IG: frequency high_like_a_spaceship/@FDSportsbook) pic.twitter.com/Hp78BZMUB0
— br_betting (@br_betting) December 3, 2020
Anytime TD scorer bets typically get placed on running backs, quarterbacks, or anyone else on the offensive side of the ball, but one bettor on FanDuel turned his $5 bet into a 4-figure score by taking a less likely approach.
Relying on the defense or special teams to lead you to a big payday is one of the more “thinking outside the box” methods we have seen but paid off handsomely for this FanDuel bettor.
15-Leg Progressive Jackpot
Despite the bet being placed way back in 2016, it would feel wrong to not include this hall of fame nominee parlay bet. An unnamed sports bettor struck gold by winning the progressive jackpot on a 15-leg basketball parlay at William Hill sportsbook in Las Vegas. A progressive jackpot means the total pot rolls over until someone wins, then the total pot gets reset.
This lucky winner took home $305,375 on a $5 bet. The bet included college basketball teams such as Mississippi State, Stanford, Texas, Gonzaga, Utah, Purdue, Vanderbilt, Middle Tennessee, California, Arkansas, Ohio State, and Wisconsin on both Saturday and Sunday. On that same Saturday, they survived a major scare with the Golden State Warriors, who needed a late foul and overtime to cover against Oklahoma City.
On the ensuing Monday, the final bet was Kansas over Texas, and Kansas won easily, (86-56). Michael Grodsky, William Hill’s director of marketing, told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that the bettor played it safe and hedged an unspecified amount on that final Monday college basketball game.
The vast majority of us will never be this lucky. These wins stand atop piles of hundreds of thousands that were “so close” or “one leg away” or otherwise imperfect, which is the natural course of these things. But when luck does strike, it’s only right to tip a hat to our fortunate comrades.
