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A sports bettor turned a six-figure wager into a payout exceeding $4 million after Jackson Koivun captured the 3M Open, marking the young golfer’s first PGA Tour victory.
Koivun, 21, claimed the title in Minnesota by finishing three strokes ahead of the field, overcoming several established names including Scottie Scheffler and Hideki Matsuyama. The win came in only the third professional start of his career and delivered a winner’s check of approximately $1.58 million.
While the tournament victory represented a major milestone for Koivun, the biggest financial reward connected to the event went to a DraftKings customer who had backed him before the tournament. The bettor risked $108,108.18 on Koivun at odds of +3700 and collected exactly $4,000,002.66 when the golfer lifted the trophy, according to Golf Monthly.
Koivun entered the event with an implied winning probability of about 2.6% at those odds, according to DraftKings. During the opening round, his odds reportedly drifted as high as +4400, reducing his implied chances even further. For every dollar wagered at +3700 odds, the bettor earned $37 in profit, producing a return that far exceeded the champion’s tournament earnings.
Koivun’s Rapid Rise Continues
The 3M Open represented just the third tournament of Koivun’s professional career. Before arriving in Minnesota, he had earned roughly $93,000 across his first two professional appearances.
His breakthrough performance changed that trajectory dramatically. Koivun closed the tournament at 25-under par after shooting five-under on the final day. Scheffler mounted a late challenge with an eight-under final round but ultimately finished second.
The victory also boosted Koivun’s standing in the Official World Golf Ranking. He moved to 73rd in the rankings and received 42 ranking points for the win.
Despite the significance of the title and the substantial prize money attached to it, Koivun’s earnings remained well below the amount won by the DraftKings bettor. The $4 million payout was more than two-and-a-half times larger than the golfer’s own winner’s check.
DraftKings also reported several other notable wagers connected to the tournament. One customer placed $2,000 on Ben Kohles at +9600, a bet that would have returned $192,000 had it been successful. Another bettor risked $250 on Emiliano Grillo at +11000 for a potential payout of $27,500.
Neither ticket cashed. Grillo finished tied for seventh place at 19-under par, while Kohles ended the week in ninth at 18-under.
One of Golf Betting’s Largest Reported Wins
The Koivun wager now joins a list of prominent golf betting successes that have generated attention over the years. Earlier this month Tom Kim’s triumph at the Genesis Scottish Open produced one of the biggest betting payouts of the golf season, with another DraftKings customer collecting more than $4 million after backing the South Korean golfer before the tournament began.
Among the most notable examples was a bet at the 2023 Players Championship, where a gambler reportedly won $3 million after staking $300,000 on Scottie Scheffler to win the event.
Another widely discussed case occurred in 2019 when James Adducci wagered $85,000 on Tiger Woods to win the Masters. Woods’ victory generated a payout of approximately $1.2 million for the bettor.
Long-term wagers have also produced memorable returns. In 2004, Rory McIlroy’s father, Gerry McIlroy, placed a bet on his son to win The Open Championship within a decade. The 500/1 ticket reportedly paid more than £100,000 when McIlroy eventually secured the title on the final eligible attempt.
That same year, another bettor reportedly backed McIlroy to win the Claret Jug with a £150,000 stake at 16/1 odds, resulting in a return of roughly £2.4 million.
The latest DraftKings payout appears to surpass several of those well-known examples, making it one of the largest golf-related betting wins ever reported.
Sportsbooks Show Confidence Ahead of Next Event
Attention has already shifted to Koivun’s next opportunity on the PGA Tour. The upcoming Rocket Classic at Detroit Golf Club will provide another test for the recent winner.
Despite sportsbooks often avoiding dramatic adjustments after a single result, DraftKings has installed Koivun among the leading contenders for the tournament. He opened at +2250, giving him the seventh-shortest odds in the field.
Only Cameron Young (+1000), Xander Schauffele (+1650), Chris Gotterup (+1750), Wyndham Clark (+1800), Si Woo Kim (+1900), and Patrick Cantlay (+2200) were listed ahead of him.
DraftKings also offered Koivun at +210 to finish inside the top 10. The field for the Rocket Classic will not include the world’s top two players, Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy.