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We were treated to a major upset at the U.S. Open on Thursday night after Carlos Alcaraz was sent home courtesy of Botic van de Zandschulp—a loss that cost one bettor who assumed they were in for an easy payday a whopping $25,000.
Carlos Alcaraz headed into the U.S. Open as the odds-on favorite to win the tournament, as the third-ranked player in the world recently secured his second win at Wimbledon along with the silver medal he won at the Olympics in Paris after losing to second-ranked Novak Djokovic in the men’s individual final.
The Spaniard—who previously won the U.S. Open in 2022—didn’t have much trouble dispatching Li Tu in an opening-round match in Queens where his opponent landed a sponsorship just by being paired up with Alcaraz, and it seemed safe to assume he’d also breeze through his showdown with Botic van de Zandschulp of The Netherlands on Thursday.
Van de Zandschulp headed into the match sitting in the 74th spot in the ATP rankings, and the man who’s still in search of the first singles title of his professional career was understandably a very heavy underdog against an opponent who was listed as a -10000 favorite at BetMGM.
One bettor took a look at that line and figured they were in a prime position to win some easy money before deciding to drop $25,000 on Alcaraz under the assumption they wouldn’t have any problem walking away with a relatively paltry $250 when everything was said and done.
I know we're all neck deep in CFB, but how about a #USOpen sweat tonight?
Per @BetMGM Nevada's Scott Shelton (@scottatmirage), a bettor put $25,000 on Alcaraz -10000 vs. Van de Zandschulp. To win $250.
Alcaraz loses first set 6-1. Second set tied at 4.
— Patrick Everson (@PatrickE_Vegas) August 30, 2024
However, in the immortal words of Lee Corso: Not so fast my friend!
You have to imagine the bettor in question started sweating a bit when Van de Zandschulp won the first set 6-1, and while Alcaraz was able to put up more of a fight in the second, the Dutchman ultimately persevered with a 7-5 victory before putting things away in straight sets with a 6-4 showing in the third.
Ouch.