London, England - A lucky gambler from the UK has pocketed a massive $23,300 (£18,000) payout after correctly betting on Archie as the name of the new royal baby.
The grandmother, who has remained unnamed for security purposes, explained that she chose the name because the birth of the baby boy of Prince Harry and actress, Meghan Markle, coincided with the birthday of her own grandson, whose name is Archie.
The unnamed woman wagered $155 while the name was at 150-1 odds, giving her a gigantic return of $23,535. She adds that she just might set aside the money for her grandson.
The winning grandmother said her bet was more “cheeky” than inside information. She said in a published interview: “The reason I went for Archie was because my grandson, who is born on the same day as the prince, is named Archie, So I thought I’d go for a cheeky bet as perhaps my Archie would bring some luck. Here I am, $23375 (£18,000) richer; the money though, I’m going to put aside for my grandson.”
The royal baby was called “Baby Sussex” for a time after his birth on May 6. His real name was not divulged until the Queen and Prince Philip paid a visit to the new family at Windsor.
Most bets that bookmakers felt were on the cards were old-fashioned names like Arthur, Alexander, or James. Another one that gained a lot of bets was Spencer, with many guessing that Harry might name his son after his mother, Princess Diana. Most bets — in fact, a whopping 72% — were placed on the name Alexander.
Typically in earlier Scottish reigns, the name Archibald has been prevalent but there has never been a King Archie, which is perhaps why bookmakers were only offering a 100/1 payout on the Duke and Duchess of Sussex giving their baby boy the name “Archie.”
Ladbrokes said that only $130 was staked across 60 bets on Archie and Coral added the name garnered just a handful of bets. Both bookmakers thought Archie to be a very unlikely winner.
Alex Apati, from Ladbrokes, projected that more than $1.3 million will be won from all royal baby bets, such as gender and due date. He had this to say about the surprise announcement: “Harry and Meghan have settled for a 100-1 shot in the betting and we couldn’t be more pleased for the happy couple.”
