Launching a massive casino project is a gamble. There’s no guarantee that the investment will pay off, and many multimillion-dollar projects have failed to reach their expected goals. However, those who are willing to take the risk will often be willing to make huge bets elsewhere, as well. This is true of Derek Stevens, the casino mogul behind the D Las Vegas, Golden Gate and the upcoming Circa Casino, who placed two bets on MLB action that, unfortunately for his wallet, have virtually no chance of holding up. The odds of a million-dollar payout are now out the window.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that Stevens took a calculated risk on the Miami Marlins to win the National League (NL), as well as the World Series. The Marlins looked good heading into the postseason, taking the NL wild-card series against the Chicago Cubs to advance against the Atlanta Braves. However, things aren’t exactly going as planned for the team in the NL race, and the Marlins are now down 0-2 in the best-of-five series. One more loss, and it’s over for a shot at the NL pennant, which would automatically eliminate the team from a World Series run.
Stevens reportedly put up $5,000 for the Marlins to take the NL at odds of 200-1, and $2,500 against 400-1 for the team to take the World Series. He placed his bets with Westgate, saying afterwards, “Game 7 of the World Series is Oct. 28 and that’s the day Circa opens. I can maybe cash something out over here, and help pay for the new joint.” Stevens will now have to look for another option to cover that expense.
Stevens also put up a couple of bets on the Detroit Tigers, which didn’t come through, either. Jay Kornegay, Westgate’s VP of Sportsbook, said later, “Derek and I talked about it and we know he’s a big Tigers fan. He took a shot with the Marlins because he knew they were an up-and-coming young team with solid young pitchers.”
That might come through a couple of other futures bets the casino mogul has in play. He reportedly is looking at picking up $1 million in the upcoming NCAA basketball season, provided his crystal ball is working better than it did with MLB. Originally from Michigan, Stevens has money on both Michigan State and Michigan for one or the other to win the NCAA men’s basketball title. While he can’t win both bets, for reasons that are hopefully obvious, he would still come out ahead. At odds of +1400, which Michigan is getting, a $1-million payout would require a bet of $7,000. Michigan State, with +1800 odds, would only need a bet of about $5,600 to earn $1 million.
