Bettors lose $7.2 million on record Super Bowl action
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| The Nevada sportsbooks lost big when the Ravens took a safety Sunday. (US Presswire) |
Bettors wagered a record $98.9 million on the Super Bowl at Nevada sportsbooks, and for the 21st time in 23 years the house came out a winner, the Gaming Control Board said Monday.
Books won $7.2 million, their biggest take since 2007, on the Ravens' 34-31 upset of the 49ers.
Some players made a killing parlaying the underdog Ravens on the moneyline with the “over.” Others cashed 75-to-1 bets on the last score being a safety.
And many hit it big on Colin Kaepernick prop bets. The second-year pro threw for 302 yards and ran for 62, easily eclipsing his over/under totals.
"I'm just glad the football season is finally over,” LVH SuperBook vice president Jay Kornegay told The Linemakers on Sporting News. “It just seemed that whatever we booked on Sunday, we were on the wrong side.
"It got worse at the end of the game when the 49ers got a safety," he said. “We had the last scoring play of the game with a safety being 75-to-1, which people love to play just because the odds are so high, and 9-to-1 that a safety would happen at all during the game, which people always bet 'Yes'."
Over the last decade, Nevada sportsbooks have averaged a $5.5-million win on the Super Bowl.
Although Sunday was a good day overall for the books, the record amount wagered meant the hold percentage was 7.3 percent, third-lowest in the last 10 years.
The previous wagering record was $94.5 million, on the Steelers-Seahawks matchup in 2006.
Books raked in their biggest payday in 2005, netting $15.4 million on the Eagles-Patriots Super Bowl. They absorbed their biggest loss, $2.5 million, when the Giants shocked the Patriots in 2008.
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