DraftKings Ordered to Pay $3 Million to Players After Error Allowed Parlays With Dependent Outcomes

^{Pictured: Nathan Lukes, Toronto Blue Jays}

U.S. sportsbook DraftKings has been ordered to pay customers nearly $3 million after a line error during an MLB playoff game, the New York Post reported. The company attempted to void already accepted bets, citing a technical mistake, but regulators in several states sided with players.

According to the findings, the issue stemmed from player prop markets involving Toronto outfielder Nathan Lukes. Bets on Lukes were available as usual, odds appeared normal, and the player took part in the game. However, within DraftKings’ internal system, Lukes was incorrectly flagged as a “non-participant,” which prevented automated safeguards from blocking parlays containing dependent outcomes.

One customer noticed the error and placed parlays combining multiple bets on Lukes’ total hits in the game — 5+, 6+, 7+, and 8+. These outcomes are directly linked: if a player records eight hits, all lower thresholds are automatically satisfied.

Under normal circumstances, such combinations are prohibited. However, DraftKings’ system treated the markets as independent and allowed them to be combined into a single parlay. Lukes went on to record nine hits, resulting in all wagers winning.

DraftKings sought to void the bets as having been placed due to an “obvious error,” but regulators in Massachusetts and New Jersey rejected the request, noting that the bets had been officially accepted and that the player acted within the offered terms.

Gambling Park notes that DraftKings will ultimately pay approximately $934,000 to one customer in Massachusetts and an additional $1.8 million to players in New Jersey. In Pennsylvania, where the potential payout was significantly smaller, the regulator took a different stance and allowed the sportsbook to void the wagers.