Big Parlay Wins
A parlay is a single sports wager that involves two or more bets combined into one. This can include point spreads, moneylines, totals, futures, or even prop bets, as long as the bets are on different games.
Anyone who bets a parlay with seven teams is a dreamer. You hope to hit all seven legs and get a huge payout. The win is especially large if you’re throwing some big underdogs on there. A parlay only wins if none of the sides, totals or moneylines selected is a loser. The parlay can still be a winner if a game is canceled or ends in a tie. The pay schedule will simply more down to the lesser payment. For example, the bettor will win if a baseball parlay for four teams has three winners and one game is canceled because of rain.
The allure of these bets has always been a larger payout than choosing a single team to win. But there’s more gamble to these types of wagers because every “leg” of the parlay needs to not lose in order to win. If one leg loses, the whole parlay loses.
The flexibility of a parlay bet also makes it attractive to gamblers. You can combine multiple sports into your parlay bet; for example, you can include the Cowboys from the NFL, the Celtics from the NBA and the Coyotes from the NHL into a single bet. If they all win, you win.
Test out the parlay calculator above and compare odds at different sportsbooks to see how it works!
Placing a parlay bet
There are two ways to place a parlay bet and both are quite simple. Bettors can either tell the ticket writer directly which teams and totals they’d like to bet on and how much they’d like to risk on the bet. Filling out a parlay card is the other option for placing this kind of bet. Once the card is filled in, the bettor simply needs to visit the sportsbook desk to place the bet.
Some mobile sports wagering apps offer both types of parlay bets.
Get the best parlay deal at online sportsbooks with Parlay Insurance here:
Winning a parlay
There are two instances when a parlay can be a winning bet. A parlay only wins if none of the sides, totals or moneylines selected is a loser. The parlay can still be a winner if a game is canceled or ends in a tie. The pay schedule will simply more down to the lesser payment. For example, the bettor will win if a baseball parlay for four teams has three winners and one game is canceled because of rain. The bet will only pay based on the schedule for three winners instead of four as originally planned. The bet is a loser if one pick for a parlay is wrong.
Parlay odds
Not all parlay payouts are the same. Sportsbooks may have different odds for the number of teams bet in a parlay. This can be very confusing when looking at online sports that have different odds and payouts for the same parlay. Further, these odds may change at any time so bettors should check with the ticket writer in sportsbook before placing a parlay.
Parlay payouts
Payouts for a parlay are fixed by the time the bet is placed. Even if the lines and odds for an individual game move, the parlay lines and odds won’t change from when the parlay bet was placed. The parlay bet won’t be changed whether the lines change for or against the bettor.
Big Parlay Wins Bet
If the lines change for a game, or games, in the favor of the bettor another parlay may be bet with the new line. The original bet cannot be changed and the bet will stand. The good news is that the bettor has two live parlay bets.
Types of parlays
A parlay is a type of sports bet and there are different variations of this kind of wager. The most common types of parlays are Round Robin parlays and Teasers.
Round Robin
A Round Robin bet is placing multiple parlay wagers at once. It’s just that simple. Round Robin bets are just a way to simplify making multiple parlays. When a bettor “Round Robin’s” teams in sports betting it’s similar to a horse bettor “boxing” horses for an exacta or trifecta bet in a race.
The bettor will select anywhere from 3 to 8 teams or totals to be in the Round Robin. They will then choose how many teams or totals they’d like to tie together for the Round Robin. For example, a bettor may select eight teams and totals for a Round Robin and tie the parlays to as many three-team combinations as possible.
The combination of teams will dictate how many different parlays the bettor has. Continuing the example, if a bettor wants to Round Robin eight teams they will have 28 different parlays if they choose two teams. If the bettor chooses to make three-team parlays they will have 56 different parlay tickets.
The ticket will cost the amount chosen for each parlay. If the bettor only has $300 they might choose to Round Robin the teams by two, so they have 28 different parlays for $10 each. The payout for each winning parlay is the same as it would be if the parlay bets were each made individually.
Teaser
A teaser is similar to a traditional parlay where the bettor can select multiple teams or totals. However, there are no moneylines allowed with a teaser. Unlike a parlay, the bettor may move each point spread or total plus or minus a certain number of points. The additional points on the spread or total make these bets easier to win and thus they pay less than a traditional parlay.
Teaser bets can change the point spreads or totals anywhere from six to 10 points. However, each leg of the teaser must use the same number of points. Those legs of the teaser may go in different directions.
- For example, the New England Patriots -7 can be teased down six points to -1. Meanwhile, the Cleveland Browns can be teased up six points from +4 to +10 points.
Much like a traditional parlay, the more teams involved with a teaser the better the payoff. Again, different sportsbooks have different odds and rules so they might have different payouts and teaser options available to bet.
Parlay Cards
The more popular way to bet parlays in casinos today seems to be with a Parlay Card. These are the long narrow cards where bettors fill in the numbered circle of the side or point spread they want to include in their bet. Once the teams and totals are chosen the bettor simply presents the filled in portion on the card to the ticket writer in the sportsbook along with how much they’d like to wager.
Parlay Cards are especially popular during football season. There are many different types of Parlay Cards including a variety of teasers, ties win and reverse teaser cards known as pleasers. These are more popular every year so the mobile sports wagering apps have started to add Parlay Cards for mobile bettors.
The seasoned experts might advise against it, but multiple-leg parlays are one of the most exciting ways to bet on sports. It’s not often that you can turn $100 into $1,000 or more with just a few wins. The catch? It’s hard winning more than half of the games on your ticket, let alone all of them. In fact, the pros only win 52% to 53%. With that being said, when you read about these parlay winners you might think the risk is worth the reward.
1 – Beginner’s Luck
An admittedly novice gambler, Tayla Polia would quickly get her name in the record books with an NFL parlay that changed her life. In week 15 of the 2015 season, she decided to wager a modest $5 as a parlay on 15 separate bets (14 against the spread, one over/under). The odds for the particular bet were a long shot at 20,000 to 1.
Come Monday, she was $100,000 richer when all 15 games hit.
2 – Odd Parlay Prop
The Super Bowl is known for being a holiday for sports bettors, but for one unnamed gambler, Super Bowl LII was more like all the holidays rolled into one. Betting $15 on a nine-leg parlay full of prop bets, there was minimal risk, but winning was unlikely.
The odds were 400-1, but “odd” was the key to the winner’s night. He accurately predicted a high-scoring affair that was filled with odd numbers. The parlay was fulfilled as the game ended 41-33, and the odd numbered scores made for an even $6,000 payday.
3 – College Pays
Winning one parlay is hard enough, but one high-roller cashed in on an eight-teamer and a 10-teamer on the same weekend.
The New Jersey bettor wagered $1,200 across the two plays, which were comprised of mostly NCAA football games. Two NBA games were also snuck in at the end of the 10-team parlay. The odds for the two separate bets? 90 to 1 and 233 to 1.
When the weekend was over, the book had paid out more than $300,000. Some questionable play calling led to a push in one of the games on the ticket, so the lucky winner missed out on even more cash. We can only hope he didn’t complain too much.
4 – A Nice Ring to It
Love, March Madness, gambling…few combinations could create a better story. Kevin Maselli of New Jersey had been in the process of saving up for a ring as a proposal to his girlfriend, Leah. The engagement loomed imminent. With the cost of rings soaring, $0.14 would soon go a long way in making the purchase.
Maselli had an interesting strategy when it came to sports gambling. He would make long parlay bets but would only wager 10 or 20 cents on each. He said they would hit occasionally, but with such a small amount wagered, the payouts weren’t huge.
During the 2019 NCAA Tournament, he bet a 14-leg parlay, choosing the winner against the spread and the over/under in seven separate games. When Auburn came back to win against Kansas, Charles Barkley wasn’t the only one yelling.
His unlikely $0.14 bet netted Maselli more than $1,300. Of course, he said he would put the money toward a ring.
5 – First Ever
On this list we’ve covered some unlikely wins with parlays up to 15 legs. This next winner took it to another level and completed the first 20-legger in the Vicksburg, Mississippi sportsbook’s history.
How rare was the win? BetAmerica VP Alan Stremel said that it was the first 20-game parlay winner he’d ever seen. Other books said that they typically wouldn’t even offer the bet.
Now, the big reveal of how much the bet paid out on the initial $25—$104,400.
6 – The Favorite
The crazy thing about this particular win is that the lucky bettor only took favorites en route to an eight-leg parlay win. The wager encompassed eight college football NCAA games with lines ranging from -2 ½ to -37 ½.
After hitting on the first seven legs of the parlay, a series of miraculous events in the Stanford vs. Oregon game ensued. The Cardinal rallied from a 17-point deficit, helped in large part by an Oregon fumble as the clock winded down. Cardinal kicker Jet Toner (it just keeps getting better) sent the game to overtime with a field goal.
The rest is gambling history. Stanford managed to score a touchdown then forced an interception from Oregon’s Justin Herbert. Stanford wasn’t the only winner that night. A $366 bet cashed out at a little more than $61,000.
7 – Wrong Is Right
Sometimes, you just get lucky. One man placed a five-leg parlay bet at a Jamaican sportsbook on a series of soccer matches when he noticed something was off on his card. He had accidentally selected Roma over Barcelona in the last game of the day.
Upon recognizing his mistake, he attempted to cancel the bet but he didn’t make it in time and the card remained unchanged. This “mishap” ended up being rewarded with a more than $52,000 payout. As revered painter Bob Ross would say, “There are no mistakes, just happy accidents.”
8 – Wait, I Did What?
For some of us, when waking up after a long night of drinking, the money in our wallets disappear. Quite the opposite happened to one extremely lucky man on a visit to Las Vegas.
The story goes like this… Derek Bergee, after presumably several cocktails, wandered into a casino around 3:30 AM. A friendly visitor from Minnesota started chatting up Bergee and, as one thing led to another, Bergee ended up placing $100 on a four-leg parlay that was centered on Minnesota sports, including a college hockey matchup where he took a huge underdog over a traditional power.
The hangover the next morning was undoubtedly eased, as all four parts of the reckless parlay hit, and the initial $100 was turned into $26,000 overnight. I’d be remiss if I failed to say that gambling at 3:30 AM while drinking heavily usually ends poorly. Proceed with caution.
Conclusion
Big Parlay Wins College Football
While parlays, especially those with more than five or six games, are typically a long shot, this article proves that they can pay off. Some gamblers see great value in a bet where mere dollars can turn into thousands, but for most bettors it’s wasted cash.
While I would contest that sports betting involves more skill than luck, there’s no question that these winners were lucky more than anything else. If the math adds up, and you’re looking to roll the dice, pick out your 10 favorite games and let the chips fall where they may. As the New York lottery slogan says, “You just never know!”