- A bettor could score a payout of $1.7 million if the Oklahoma City Thunder win the NBA title.
- The original $100 bet was a parlay ticket that also included championships for the Texas Rangers and Kansas City Chiefs, both of which have happened.
- Wayne Shelton is looking to hedge this high-risk bet by offering investors exposure on the secondary market.
A sports bettor named Wayne Shelton placed a wild parlay wager in May 2023 that is on the verge of paying out if the Oklahoma City Thunder win the NBA Finals in June, according to ESPN.
The parlay ticket was purchased via DraftKings and cost Shelton just $100. Now he stands to win $1.7 million, representing a potential return of 1,690,900% if the bet pans out.
For the ticket to pay out the $1.7 million, the Texas Rangers had to win the MLB World Series (check), the Kansas City Chiefs had to win the NFL Super Bowl (also check). The final piece is an NBA title for the Thunder.
"I never bet that high on a future, especially a lottery ticket like this one. They gave me a high max and I just said, 'You know what? This one time, max it out, let's go.' [I] never do that. [And] here we are," Shelton told ESPN.
Because it's a parlay bet, it's an all-or-nothing payout scheme, meaning Shelton gets absolutely nothing besides a thrilling experience if the Thunder lose one of their next three series.
That is unless he cashes out on the ticket early with DraftKings, the sportsbook through which he placed the original bet. Other options include betting on other NBA Finals outcomes — or even against the Thunder's current opponent — as a hedge against Oklahoma City falling short.
Shelton investigated how much DraftKings would pay him to cash out his $1.7 million parlay ticket after the Thunder won their first series against the New Orleans Pelicans, but at about $75,000, Shelton thought that was a bad deal.
Instead, he sought out the novel solution of offering other sports bettors a chance to get in on the bet on the secondary market. Using a service called WagerWire, Shelton opened his ticket up to potential offers from outside investors.
Shelton has so far received offers from outside investors for as much as $200,000, but part of the challenge is verifying those offers are legitimate. His top priority is to protect his ticket, ESPN reported.
There is an entire separate industry dedicated to playing matchmaking between high-rolling sports bettors and opportunities with high initial buy-ins, like Shelton's parlay ticket. ESPN noted that there is a so-called "concierge service" called White Glove Bets that boasts a roster of "high-level VIPs" whose risk tolerance is often too high for major sportsbooks.
Shelton is still retaining full ownership of his ticket until he finds a suitable offer, but his experience seeking investors on WagerWire offers an early look at the markets will continue to crop up following the legalization of sports betting.
In the meantime, Shelton will be closely watching the Thunder. They currently have a 1-0 lead in their best-of-seven Western Conference semifinal series against the Dallas Mavericks, leaving Shelton a mere 11 victories from gambling immortality, regardless of what he ends up doing with his ticket.
