When a betting agency began offering odds on what color tie a veteran political journalist would be wearing during a live telecast, he decided to have some fun.
Laurie Oakes switched up his neckwear multiple times during Channel Nine News' coverage of the Australian general election on Saturday night to throw the Sportsbet wager into disarray.
Oakes' amusing antics ended up forcing agency bosses to pay out to everyone who'd gambled on him wearing either a yellow, blue, black, green, gold or any other color tie.
"I thought well why should anyone miss out?" Oakes told the "Today" show. "So I wore all six colors and in the end Sportsbet paid out on every bet."
"I like to think of myself as the punters' protector," he added.
According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Sportsbet bosses initially thought they were in for a windfall when Oakes began the program wearing a red tie -- the color with the shortest odds.
But when he swapped it up for a green number, they started to get suspicious.
After Oakes plumped for a third, yellow, necktie, they realized the game was up.
They could only look on as Oakes then opted for a fourth, blue tie.
And then this black one.
By the time he wore his sixth tie, Sportsbet decided they'd been well and truly rumbled -- and offered to pay out an all of the colors.
"Sportsbet decided to tip its hat to the Oakes and have paid out on all the Laurie Oakes tie bets, handing 57 punters a total of $3,010," a Sportsbet spokesman told Nine News.
As for the election itself, the winner is reportedly still too close to call. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and opposition Labor Party leader Bill Shorten are now in talks with independent lawmakers as they each bid to form a minority government.
