Why is LVA So Fascinated with Mattress Mack?

I mean no disrespect to Mattress Mack or LVA. But I'm not getting LVA's fascination with him. I get that he bets lots of money, but he has lots of money to bet! He's not a Vegas native. He's from Texas, I believe. I tried to read the blog pointed to in Vegas News, but it didn't seem to answer my question. (Plus, my attention span isn't what it used to be.)

Our "fascination" with Mattress Mack has a number of aspects on several levels.

First and perhaps foremost, it's well known that Anthony Curtis and his friend and colleague Frank B have been involved with Mack's sports betting for many years. When Mack first realized that he might do better with sports betting than insurance policies to hedge his furniture promotions, Mack's attorney, an LVA subscriber, called to ask if Anthony and company could help. Since then, Anthony has consulted on dozens of sports bets totaling tens of millions of dollars, which isn't an everyday occurrence, not even in our world. (The story of the original play is told here.)

In addition, there's that whole other dimension to the sports betting: hedging the furniture promotions in which Mack refunds millions of dollars of revenue if a certain result -- the Houston Astros win the World Series, for one -- comes to pass. This is an enormous factor in the strategies Anthony and Frank have helped develop for Mack and again, as far as we know, such a hedge is anything but commonplace in the sports betting market. So a lot of the fascination is with the success of these strategies that were born of this affiliation and pioneered to a large degree by our very own.

Furthermore, yes, Mack has a lot of money to bet, but he's not the Sultan of Brunei or Jeff Bezos. He's a self-made businessman who has a history and reputation of putting his money where his mouth is. He's beloved in Houston for donating to charitable causes; in the middle of Hurricane Harvey in 2017 when he was flooded out of his own house, he opened his furniture stores as shelters for people who had nowhere else to go. He deployed his moving trucks to rescue more than 200 people trapped in their homes or stranded on highways, then let them sleep on showroom furniture and fed them at his own expense.

The $73 million he just won in futures bets on the Astros is the biggest, by far, in sports betting history. But all that money didn't exactly go into his bank account. Instead, he turned his big win into an even bigger win for his customers, who'll be getting their furniture for free.

Besides, we don't exactly hit our members and readers over the head with Mattress Mack. We had one Vegas News item about it and made a minor mention of it in the newsletter.

All in all, this is a feel-good story that, to us, is hard to beat. And combined with all the other elements of the Mattress Mack myth, we do, admittedly, have a fascination with it, even if not everyone else does.

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Comments

Donzack Nov-27-2022

Most interesting

I’ve always found the Mattress Mack articles some of the best written and most interesting articles in LVA. We could all learn something from those articles. Anthony, how about a short book.

thebeachbum Nov-27-2022

Mack the Legend

Lived in Houston area for about 20 years.  Bought furniture from him.  He actually works at his store.  You see him at the counter when you walk in the store.  Many say he's generous to a fault.  Not true.  He is just a hardworking and successful businessman that believes in his community.  Besides, LVA is one of the few places where you get the truth about his bets not exaggerations.  Hope he finds something to bet on next year.  Keep up the good work LVA.

Vegas Fan Nov-27-2022

Interesting story

Much more to the mm story than i ever imagined. He was also mentioned a couple times in the weekly update videos. Looking forward to tomorrow's buffet question. We fans feel abandoned.

Don the Dentist Nov-27-2022

Its a Business

Love reading about MM. As a successful businessman he knows marketing and knows that he is giving his store(s) a competitive advantage. And he and his attorney were wise enough to go to experts for help.

[email protected] Nov-27-2022

Jim McIngvale

Truly a fascinating man who seems like a genuinely nice guy.  As a horse racing fan I love the way he challenges assumptions and is willing to try new things.  His promotion of his champion Runhappy was unprecedented and has led other breeders to explore new and often entertaining ways to promote their horses, too.  He always seems to have a smile on his face and truly enjoys life.  I've seen many interviews with him on horse racing shows and he always comes across as positive and optimistic, looking for ways to solve problems in the sport and industry instead of just complaining about them.  Really an admirable guy!

[email protected] Nov-27-2022

Easier answer

Respect,not fascination.

Jon Anderson Nov-27-2022

Mattress Mack

a colorful character with a head for business, the soul of a gambler and a heart of gold.. what more can you ask for?? i mean no disrespect for the writer of today's QOD but pffffft !!!

Dave_Miller_DJTB Nov-27-2022

Marketing genius

Let’s not forget all of the free marketing that these type of discussions have gotten for his business. That is true genius.

Kevin Lewis Nov-27-2022

Insurance??

ANY kind of insurance, whether it's auto insurance, a sports bet hedge, or betting that the dealer has a ten in the hole is -EV. And -EV bets cost money and don't prevent something else that you presumably don't want from happening.

Mack seems like a swell guy. But the best advice to give him would have been "Suck it up and don't make your liability even larger by tacking on a -EV bet."

David Miller Nov-27-2022

Might of Known

 Only one dissenter.Pathetic...

Roy Furukawa Nov-27-2022

Multiples

I just found it odd he went from under $10 million needed to win to offset his promotion to over $70 million now in a short time. His bet in a few years will need to cover a billion at this rate.

Tim Maher Nov-27-2022

I like Mattress Mack

1st time long time.

I enjoy the Mattress Mack stories.

Keep up the great work.

Thank you!

O2bnVegas Nov-27-2022

Amen!

The stories of M M have kept my interest, but knowing much more about him, his business, his philanthropy, the LVA connection...heck, the guy deserves all the luck, not to mention respect, in the world.  Glad somebody asked.

Candy

Doozey Dec-01-2022

Mack for Prez

Mack sounds like he should be President of the USA. Hope he is not a Trumplodite.

Question of the Day - 27 November 2022

Comments