TORONTO — Nick Taylor's stunning victory at the RBC Canadian Open on Sunday took the vast majority of Proline players by surprise.
According to the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp., Taylor took just 1.5 per cent of all bets in the tournament winner market. But that was expected, given his long odds of 71.0 and Taylor entering the final round tied for eighth, four shots off the lead.
But Taylor, of Abbotsford, B.C., captured the dramatic victory with a 72-foot putt on the fourth playoff hole to beat Tommy Fleetwood. That made Taylor the first Canadian to win the tournament since 1954.
Rory McIlroy was the most popular at 16 per cent with Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., following at 12 per cent. Justin Rose was third at nine per cent.
And in the Top Canadian side market, Michael Gligic of Burlington, Ont., took 21 per cent of sales, followed by Taylor and Taylor Pendrith, of Richmond Hill, Ont., at 17 per cent.
A more popular bet was the Denver Nuggets clinching the NBA title, which they did Monday night with a 94-89 decision over the Miami Heat to win the best-of-seven final in five games.
A whopping 67 per cent of bets were on the Nuggets. And 63 per cent successfully predicted Miami would cover at +8.5 points.
A Proline digital customer hit two monster parlays recently.
A $3 bet returned $2,210 on a 10-leg major-league baseball parlay that included wins by Cincinnati, the New York Mets, Texas, Baltimore, Los Angeles Dodgers, Houston, New York Yankees Yankees plus two unders. The other, a $4 wager, paid off at $2,213 on another 10-leg baseball parlay.
A Proline retail bettor earned $10,931 from a $2 bet that featured eight draws in various soccer leagues, finishing with Toronto FC's 1-1 tie with Nashville SC on Saturday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 14, 2023.
The Canadian Press
