The 1.01 strategy is very common where gamblers try to make small wins with the lowest risk possible. In order to make a significant profit, you need to place many bets. This case proves that this strategy doesn't work.
Lowest risk possible really do apply in two ways which could either be,
Against the odds your wagering with or
The wager in itself.
Now, 1.01 odd is what you might consider a safe bet, a sure odd to produce good result and as such, the gambler choose to neglect the risk in the wager amount in $1.414m as the odds was already promising.
$14k is a good win when you wager within the range $100-$1000 and about that point.
What the gambler failed to put into comparison here is the risk to reward ratio. The gambler just don’t do the maths else, it was a reckless attempt given that, anything do happen in a game, not minding the odds.