Willy Wonka has nothing on vegas sports books in regards to selling Golden tickets.
Thirteen wagers were placed in 500-1 chances on the Golden Knights to win the Stanley Cup at the Westgate sports publication during the preseason. William Hill sports publication took 350 futures on the Knights at 100-1 or higher.
Those long-shot wagers and prospective souvenirs suddenly have been magically transformed into virtual Golden tickets by arguably the best expansion team in gaming history.
The Knights still are eight victories from winning the Stanley Cup, but their backers could lock in a healthy profit now by selling their futures bets on PropSwap.com.
A startup secondary marketplace for busy sports wagers in Las Vegas, PropSwap, has offered 20 Knights stakes and contains five futures tickets available, such as a $400 bet at 300-1 chances that pays $120,000. That ticket is on sale for $40,000.
“Just like StubHub does for Golden Knights tickets, we do for Golden Knights stakes,” said Ian Epstein, who founded PropSwap with Luke Pergande. “We are a broker. You will find individuals with sports stakes that want to sell, and we head out and find buyers for this.”
PropSwap, that takes 10 percent of the selling price, also includes a $300 ticket on the Knights at 100-1 odds that pays $30,000 on sale for $13,500.
In both cases, the vendor is prepared to accept less than the purchase price, considering that the Knights are now the 3-1 second choice to acquire the NHL title.
“These are open for bidding,” Epstein said. “We can negotiate.”
A 500-1 ticket — a $50 wager to win $25,000 — was marketed on PropSwap for $550 in November. The buyer put it back up for sale for as much as $4,400 but has since taken it off the market. Another 500-1 wager — $20 to win $10,000 — also is in the company’s database but is not available, either.
SHORT DESCRIPTION (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
“If you gamble a 500-1 ticket and marketed it today, you’d make 125 times your cash,” Pergande said. “When’s the last time you have hit a 125-1 long haul?”
Other earnings of Knights tickets included a $70 wager at 200-1 odds to win $14,000 that sold for $250 in November. The same ticket was sold for $1,400 in March.
A $100 ticket in 100-1 chances to win $10,000 currently sold for $1,750, and a $10 ticket at 150-1 odds to win $1,500 sold for $660 on Monday.
“My guidance to Knights fans would be to offer your ticket, lock in a profit and revel in the remainder of the Stanley Cup playoffs,” Epstein said. “nobody ever went broke taking a profit”
Pergande said many Knights backers have resisted selling their own tickets lest they be considered less than a true fan.
“It will not make you any less of a fan if you market your wager,” he said. “You are still rooting for the Knights. You simply like cash.”
In January, PropSwap sold for $3,450 per month bettor’s $50 ticket in 200-1 odds to win $10,000 on the Knights winning the Pacific Division. The seller made more than $3,000, and also the purchaser ultimately turned a gain of $6,550.
The Knights continue to fuel that a seller’s market, since they’ve yet to track in a playoff series. But Epstein cautions that they will be underdogs in the Western Conference Final and won’t have home-ice advantage.
“These men who have Knights bets have never had their backs against the walls,” he said. “They believe this roller coaster is going to keep moving up and up and it is not likely to stop. … We are trying to put money in your pocket.”
William Hill would lose more than $1 million if the Knights hoist the Cup, and Wynn Las Vegas sports book manager Johnny Avello estimates the nation’s sports books would lose $5 million to $10 million.
More gambling: Follow all our sports betting coverage online at reviewjournal.com/betting and @RJ_Sports on Twitter.
Contact writer Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on Twitter.
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