If you know the story of Nick Dunlap's historic victory on the PGA Tour, you will more than likely be aware that the University of Alabama sophomore missed out on the $1.5 million winner's check on account of the fact he is an amateur. He also failed to earn any FedEx Cup points, either, for the same reason.
It was a stunning achievement nonetheless, and the 20-year-old's tears after holing the final putt proved that standing on top of the mountain remains the priority for the vast majority of professional golfers, regardless of the eye-watering amount of cash on offer in certain quarters.
The win did produce a couple of key non-financial benefits, though, with Dunlap moving up an eye-widening 4,061 places in the OWGR to No.68 and becoming able to take up PGA Tour membership at any point during the 2024 season, while retaining it through the 2026 season.
But while Dunlap wasn't able to significantly inflate his bank balance after edging out South Africa's Christiaan Bezuidenhout by a shot on Sunday, there was someone not in the field who likely celebrated the young American's result even more enthusiastically than most.
According to FanDuel Sportsbook, someone in the US state of Iowa bet $300 on Dunlap winning the American Express before a shot was struck on Thursday. As a result of Dunlap's 500-1 odds at the time, the premonitive punter ended up landing $150,000 - plus their $300 stake back. Meanwhile, in the comments on the original social-media post, another fan won a little over $1,000 after "only" putting $2 on the 20-year-old to succeed.
🚨 HUGE WIN 🚨One customer in Iowa bet $300 on amateur Nick Dunlap to win The American Express at 500/1.The payout: $150,300 🤯 pic.twitter.com/tJr7sJHHLBJanuary 22, 2024
While a win is a win - as they say - and no amount of money should ever be dismissed, some bets end up being more notable than others. Ahead of the 2023 Players Championship, one punter took a chance on Scottie Scheffler winning the tournament by staking $300,000 at odds of 10/1 with FanDuel Sportsbook.
After Scheffler romped to the title by five shots over his nearest challenger, the confident backer earned an extraordinary $3 million - only $1.5 million less than the player earned for doing all of the hard work!
While the ridiculous level of talent in the field alone made any sort of wager that big incredibly risky, Scheffler's past history at TPC Sawgrass would have scared most off completely - with a missed cut in 2021 and a tie for 55th in 2022. But that faith was eventually rewarded in style, and the fan ended up with some serious spending money and one hell of a story to tell to their friends and family.v
