Warriors fans' epic gamble funds lavish Open Championship experience

Warriors bet funds Open Championship trip for college friends

For a group of college friends, the Warriors' 2022 NBA Finals win was extra special. 

When many had counted Golden State out during the season, Andrew Beliveau -- a diehard Warriors fan -- and his buddies pooled their money together and placed a massive bet estimated to be anywhere from $5,000 to $6,000 on Golden State winning the championship.

At the time of the bet, the Warriors were given 10-1 odds, which they doubled down on, netting the crew roughly $30,000 that they used to pay for a lavish trip to the Open Championship at St. Andrews in Scotland this weekend. 

Golf.com's Alan Bastable spoke to Beliveau, who shared the epic story of how the friends' bet on the Warriors landed them at the Open Championship for their annual group vacation. 

“I go, ‘Let’s just throw a s--tload of money on them,’” Beliveau told Bastable on Saturday. 

Because sports betting isn't legal in Minnesota, where Beliveau resides, he and three of the friends in the group traveled to a casino just across the border in Iowa where the group placed their bet. 

“We hit all the kiosks, as much as we could get on it,” Beliveau said. “We all chipped in.”

The payout not only paid for the group's trip but funded a lavish $18,000 Airbnb directly across the street from the 18th green. 

Fast forward to their arrival at the course, Beliveau and his friends were seen wearing bright yellow Kevon Looney jerseys, commemorating the team -- and one player in particular -- that helped make all of this possible while following four-time major champion Rory McIlroy around. 

These guys bankrolled their trip to the Open — complete with an $18,000 rental by the 18th green! — by betting on the @warriors to win the NBA title.

On Saturday, they paid homage to their good fortune by wearing Kevon Looney jerseys to the Old Course.https://t.co/eeEUByXpXv

— Alan Bastable (@alan_bastable) July 16, 2022

Why were they focused on McIlroy? Well, the group placed another large bet, this time on either McIlroy, Cameron Smith or Cameron Young to win the tournament, which, if successful, will fund a group trip to an Ole Miss football game this upcoming season. 

Winning is contagious and only time will tell if the crew's bet on the Warriors leads to more success this weekend.  

At the time of this writing, McIlroy currently is tied for first place with -16 through the first three rounds. Smith and Young, both -12, follow right behind tied for third place. It's looking like another big bet might just pay off.