Even for casual basketball fans, one of the best parts about the NCAA Tournament is filling out a bracket for March Madness, whether it’s for an office pool or at a major Las Vegas casino sportsbook. It’s become a tradition that the American Gaming Association estimates 40 million people will indulge in once the field of 68 is announced on Sunday.
Selection Sunday is being turned into a live broadcast event, with matchups being revealed on TBS at 6 pm ET.
Bracket challenges are big business and more and more places are offering them. Even billionaire and noted basketball junkie Warren Buffett offers a contest for his 377,291 employees. The winner gets $100,000, but if someone has a perfect outcome through the Sweet 16 they will receive $1 million for life.
Buffett began the contest in 2014 and he offered anyone $1 billion who completed a perfect bracket. It was a safe bet, since the odds of perfection are 1 in 9.2 quintillion. A perfect Sweet 16 is a much better bet. Last year out of 18.8 million brackets on ESPN’s challenge, only 28 were flawless through the Sweet 16.
Little Risk, Big Reward
What makes the brackets so appealing to gamblers is that many are free to enter, and the payouts can be in the thousands of dollars.
One of the most lucrative is Yahoo Sports. It’s free to join, and they have several celebrity groups. The biggest is being organized by Golden State Warriors player Draymond Green. Win his bracket challenge and take home $25,000. Other groups have prizes ranging from Bluetooth speakers to gift certificates.
Another popular contest is being offered by Fox/Sports Illustrated. Their contest is free to enter and offers a Los Angeles home or $1 million for a perfect bracket. If that isn’t achieved the winner gets $25,000.
Several online betting sites are offering paid entry bracket challenges with 100 percent prize pool payouts. The site 5Dimes has different fees of $1, $5, $10, and $25. If someone has a perfect bracket in the $25 category they will receive $25 million. Perfect sheets in the $10 get $10 million, $5 million in the $5 category and $1 million for $1.
Bookmaker is offering $1 million for perfection and if nobody gets that the winner will get $10,000. The only catch is entrants have to have an account to enter and you get one entry for every $100 deposited.
At BetOnline, new customers can open an account and get a free entry after making their first $25 wager. The winner receives $3,500 and if someone has all Final Four teams picked correctly they get $1,000.
The site with the most payouts is WagerWeb. In addition to $1 million for a perfect bracket, they are paying 100 spots.
In Las Vegas, one of the biggest contests is at the Westgate LV SuperBook. The casino is offering an unusual twist. Rather than the entire tournament, the facility is offering a competition for the first two days. For $100 participants will select winners against the spread for the first two rounds. The winner will receive 50 percent of the entry fees, with second place getting 30 percent, and third place receiving 20 percent.
“It gives them something else to root for, especially on the first two days, how exciting it is,” Westgate sports book director Jay Kornegay told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “They’ll have something else on the line that’s relatively inexpensive. Who knows, put a little run together and you can get a little bonus.”