Sickening Gambling Bad Beats: The Bets That Almost Paid Out Big

Every gambler has at least one. I speak, of course, of that ticket that looked destined to earn you a big pay day before falling just short in the most agonizing of ways to leave you heartbroken and still thinking about what could have been months, or even years, later.

We asked the Dimers readers what their "one" was, and boy, did it bring up some baaaad memories.

What's the one near-miss bet that you still think about today? 🤔

— Dimers.com (@DimersCom) July 23, 2023

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The Worst Gambling Beats

A Buzzer Beater Away from $40K

We start off with a bad beat that has stewed in this bettor's mind for so long that comes in the form of an oldschool FanDuel Sportsbook ticket.

User @AboveAvgPropGuy was so close from turning a $5 parlay bet at odds of +821584 into more than $41,000. Cashing six of the first seven legs, all that was needed on this parlay that was placed on March 16, 2021 was for the New Orleans Pelicans to overcome the Portland Trail Blazers, and for Zion Williamson to score 30 points.

With the Pels trailing by one point after a go-ahead Damian Lillard free-throw, and Zion on 28 points, the former No. 1 pick had a 9-foot shot at the buzzer out of the inbounds that would have won the game and won the bet. He came up short, leaving this bettor to rue what could have been.

Still haunts me to this day pic.twitter.com/KJ5c87IstK

— Above Average Prop Guy (@AboveAvgPropGuy) July 23, 2023

Damian Lillard game winning FT's then Zion Williamson misses game winner!
Video: https://t.co/f9wdMq47Im
Portland Trail Blazers vs New Orleans Pelicans pic.twitter.com/vdsSHhrcn6

— Chaz (@ChazNBA) March 17, 2021

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Anthony Davis In-and-Out for $96,000

Now this one sucks. Online handicapper @Geechi4848 was about as close as you can come to securing almost 100-large when Anthony Davis took possession of the ball with the Lakers down one against the LA Clippers in February 2022.

Having already cashed three player performance double legs, all that was required was for AD to score 25 and for the Lakers to win. 

As it goes, Davis would miss the buzzer beater leaving this one going down as a one-legged failure.

This one was one of the most brutal we've seen 😩 pic.twitter.com/Zs3Lymj5fR

— Dimers.com (@DimersCom) July 23, 2023

The Ol' Home Run Curse

There's an age old saying in gambling: if you put a guy in your home run parlay and he doesn't hit one, then you can be sure as hell he's hitting one the next day.

That's exactly what happened to @JohnnyBlaze013 who was a Spencer Torkleson dinger away from turning $1 into $1000 on a home run parlay.

What happened the next day? The Tigers slugger didn't hit just one homer; he hit two of them. Standard.

1$ bet. 1000$ return. Tork hit 2 homers the next day ☹️ pic.twitter.com/6qE3avezCe

— JohnnyBlaze (@JohnnyBlaze013) July 23, 2023

Early Cashout Costs $10K

Now, this was actually a bet that did win, but due to an early cashout on a home run parlay, @__elProfit screwed himself out of $10,000.

With Francisco Alvarez and Corey Seager both hitting dingers, leaving just Willie Calhoun to strike to cash the +21953 parlay, the bettor decided to take the cash out offer of $468.80 and run. It was a bad decision, though, with Calhoun eventually going yard.

Cashed out was hitting for 10k 🥲 pic.twitter.com/QsXYCIu9CQ

— Profit🎒💰 (@__elProfit) July 23, 2023

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Remember to please gamble responsibly. If you sense that you're taking your luck too far, know when to call it quits and don't be afraid to seek assistance. Keep in mind that gambling is all about having a fantastic experience! If you or someone you know is grappling with gambling issues, reach out to 1-800-GAMBLER for crisis counseling and support.