Tim,
The best score anyone ever made, and the truest definition of collapse, was the A's losing 4 straight to the Reds.
I read an article on that series, this is a fact, gamblers anonymous saw participation in their meetings increase over 30% after that series was over.
Guys bet the A's in the first game, and just kept doubling down. Anyone who took the Reds in a sweep made a fortune. I dunno about winning a house, but I do know that according to GA many people actually lost their homes on that series.
A friend of mine who owned a restaurant in Burlington was one of the double down guys who got killed. Guy had to take out a second mortgage to pay up.