Texas furniture icon Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale has placed $4.05 million in wagers on the University of Houston men’s basketball team to win the NCAA tournament.
McIngvale, who lives and does business in Houston, is backing a Cougars program that earned the No. 1 seed in the Midwest region of this year’s Big Dance and will face Northern Kentucky on Thursday evening. During the regular season, the retail magnate placed a $1.05 million bet on Houston to win the national championship (+850) at FanDuel Sportsbook, an additional $1 million (+900) at DraftKings and $1 million (+800) with Caesars Sports. More recently, with the NCAA tournament approaching, he bet $500,000 on the Cougars with BetMGM (+1000) and another $500,000 at Barstool Sportsbook (+900).
The potential payout for McIngvale’s wagers is a whopping $39.475 million. In addition, customers who spend more than $5,000 on items in his furniture stores will have the opportunity to get their money back if Houston wins the national championship.
McIngvale’s latest wager doesn’t come as too much of a surprise, as he regularly places enormous bets on sporting events, including a $2 million loss on the Cowboys in their recent playoff defeat against the 49ers. He also won $75 million, the largest payout in U.S. sports betting history, when the Astros won the World Series in ’22.
Luckily for McIngvale, should Houston win its region, neither he nor the Cougars will have to travel far. This year’s Final Four will be contested at NRG Stadium in Houston on April 1 and April 3.
