Jim "Mattress Mack" McIngvale has made a name for himself, not only for running a number of highly successful furniture stores in Houston but also for dropping large amounts of money on big sporting events.
Monday night was no different as Mack had some serious action on the National Championship game between Kansas and North Carolina. The Jayhawks were down big in the first half before rallying back from a 16-point deficit to beat the Tar Heels 72-69 in New Orleans--leaving Mclngvale walking away as a huge winner.
McIngvale netted over $12 million after wagering more than $8.8 million on the Jayhawks to win it all. Mack first wagered $5.5 million to win $10.5 million on Kansas at +190 ($3.3 million at Caesars Sportsbook and $2.25 million at Barstool Sportsbook). He was so confident that he doubled down again Monday before the game by placing a $3.3 million wager to win $1.65 million on the Jayhawk at -200.
Celebrate Kansas' National Championship victory with gear from Fanatics
The Houston furniture mogul responded to his massive win by thanking his customers at his Gallery Furniture stores for buying over $15 million worth of merchandise as a part of a promotion he ran during March.
“I think it’s great because I’m worried about my customers,” McIngvale told Fox 26’s Mark Berman. “The customers bought about $15 million worth of merchandise, so my customers are gonna be way happy tonight. They had a long first half. Thank God for my wonderful customers. They won this game and I love them all to death.”
I'm sure Mack and his customers are very happy, considering that as a part of the promo, anyone who purchased $3,000 or more in furniture at his store is entitled to a full refund. The only stipulation is that the items must be American-made or be either a Tempur-Pedic, Stearns & Foster or Sealy mattress. The merchandise must have been bought before the title game.
The wages that McIngvale placed were used as a hedging strategy to limit the risks associated with the promotion, which was originally centered around all of the Texas schools that made it to the big dance. Once Houston was eliminated by Villanova in the Elite 8, he switched it to Kansas-- being the only remaining school that is closest to Houston.
Despite winning big Monday night, McIngvale has been on quite the losing streak. While betting on college football and the NFL, Mack lost over $15 million on gambling. He first lost money betting on Alabama to beat Georgia in the National Championship game. Things didn't get any better for Mack, losing $9.5 million after betting on the Cincinnati Bengals to win Super Bowl LVI over the Los Angeles Rams.
Mack estimates that he’ll have to refund $13 million to $15 million in sales from the promotion.
The 71-year-old businessman refunded $12 million in 2017 when the Houston Astros won the World Series. His most recent "refund party" took place after he won $2.7 million on Tampa Bay over the Chiefs in Super Bowl LV.
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