B.C. Lions quarterback Nathan Rourke passes while warming up before a CFL football game against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, in Vancouver, B.C., Aug. 18, 2024. Proline bettors were firmly behind Nathan Rourke's return to the CFL last week. Rourke made his '24 debut Sunday night when the B.C. Lions hosted the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Proline bettors were firmly behind Nathan Rourke’s return to the CFL last week.
Rourke made his ’24 debut Sunday night when the B.C. Lions hosted the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. It was Rourke’s first CFL game since the 2022 season and followed NFL tryouts with the Jacksonville Jaguars, New England Patriots, New York Giants and Atlanta Falcons.
But the Bombers spoiled Rourke’s return, earning a 20-11 win. Rourke finished eight-of-25 passing for 126 yards with two interceptions.
According to the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp., only 36 per cent of players successfully backed the Bombers’ victory. The Lions visit the Ottawa Redblacks on Saturday night.
In other CFL action, the Edmonton Elks earned a third straight win by downing the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 47-22 at Tim Hortons Field. Just 38 per cent of bettors took the Elks to win but 84 per cent did take the over at 51.5.
It was another tough weekend for the Toronto Blue Jays, who dropped two of their three games to the Chicago Cubs although all of the contests were close. Chicago took the first two contests by scores of 6-5 (Friday) and 3-2 (Saturday) before the Jays won Sunday’s game 1-0.
Forty-nine per cent of bettors backed the Jays runline at +1.5 on Friday while 68 per cent successfully took the over at 9.5. But only 34 per cent of players successfully took Toronto’s runline at +1.5 on Saturday.
On Sunday, 63 per cent of players backed the Toronto win but only 25 per cent had the Jays runline at +1.5.
In golf, Hideki Matsuyama won the PGA Tour’s FedEx St. Jude Championship. But just two per cent of bettors successfully had Matsuyama’s victory.
A majority of bettors (55 per cent) are backing Max Verstappen to win Formula One’s drivers championship. Not surprisingly, Red Bull – the team Verstappen drives for – has 64 per cent backing to capture the constructor’s title.
A Proline retail player won $1,520 from a $1 bet on a successful four-pick soccer parlay. And a digital bettor turned a $1 bet into a $769 windfall on a nine-pick NFL parlay.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 21, 2024.
