What inspires casino players more than stories about the biggest gambling wins? Probably just a few things, but they are certainly a reason to give a thrilling slot or live dealer game a try. So, today’s article by FortRodHill is exactly about that. Moreover, we have more than just one story for you. There are seven of them!
Biggest Gambling Wins at Land-Based Casinos
Let’s begin with those who did not mind leaving their homes in search of big wins and went to land-based casinos. Each of them managed to scoop over $20M with just one lucky bet, but none of them managed to make history with the biggest gambling win ever. Nonetheless, let’s find out who those lucky people were and what games they played.
Johanna Heundl – $22.6M
Johanna Heundl was a lucky woman from California who celebrated her 74th birthday on May 17th, 2002, in Las Vegas. She was on her way to have breakfast and decided to try her luck in winning a progressive Megabucks jackpot from International Casino Technology. She spent $100 with no success and decided to give it a try with another $100. After spending $170, Johanna was surprised to see that she won a jackpot.
She thought it was a $2M win first. How shocked she was to find out that such a small sum spent on bets brought her a stunning $22.6M! She requested a jackpot payment in one lump sum. That was the 57th Megabucks big gambling win awarded to players since it originated in 1986. Johanna Heundl was not sure what she would do with such a big sum after becoming a multimillionaire, but she certainly planned to visit her relatives in Austria.
Cynthia Jay-Brennan – $34.9M
Luck is an unpredictable thing, and the story of Cynthia Jay-Brennan, a cocktail waitress, proves it. She decided to try her luck at Desert Inn Casino in Las Vegas and spent $23 in total just to win a massive $34.9M jackpot in Megabucks slot machines! This was one of the biggest gambling wins in history when it was scooped in 2000.
Cyntia’s life changed significantly, and she enjoyed a rich and careless life with her fiancé for a couple of weeks until her lucky tale turned into an absolutely dramatic one. She, her sister, and her fiancé got into a cruel car accident as a drunk driver hit their car. Her sister and fiancé died, while Cynthia survived but remained paralyzed for the rest of her life. Still, thanks to that big win, she was able to cover all the medical expenses and adapt to a new life, making it as comfortable as possible.
A 25-Year-Old Software Engineer – $39.7M
Even though it is not one of the biggest sports gambling wins, a $39.7M jackpot was still scooped by a person who came to watch the basketball game of “March Madness” in Las Vegas with some friends. After putting in just one dollar at Excalibur Hotel, the 25-year-old software engineer, who decided to remain anonymous, landed this record-breaking win. This lucky bet brought him a Megabucks progressive jackpot in 2003. It was built for slightly more than a year after being scooped by Joanna Heundl in 2002. This jackpot was being paid in equal amounts in 25 years. That is how all the Megabucks progressive jackpots are paid unless a winner wants to have it another way.
Kerry Packer – $40M
While the Megabucks progressive jackpot was a way to go for slot admirers, Kerry Packer showed that blackjack could also bring some decent wins. He managed to walk away with $40M only after 40 minutes of play, and it was just one of the biggest gambling wins for the Australian media tycoon. It sounds exciting, but we doubt that you would manage to repeat his success, as you need to be risky enough to play with a $250,000 bet.
A $40M win might sound like a fairytale, but when it comes to Kerry Packer, not everything is so perfect. Kerry Packer is also on the list of those who accounted for the biggest gambling losses in history, as he was a compulsive gambler who did not hesitate about his high-roller bets. As a result, his big gambling wins often happened after a series of big losses.
Biggest Online Gambling Wins
While those mentioned above were big wins in land-based casinos, there are also a couple of exciting stories about big online gambling wins. We are going to take a look at the three most spectacular jackpot wins in history. They might make anyone jealous, as those lucky players did not even leave their cozy homes to become millionaires!
36-Year-Old Christina – $96.3M EuroJackpot
While Cynthia Jay-Brennan’s win was bitter, the story behind the win of Christina M, a cleaner from Gibraltar, was more like a fairytale. In June 2018, she decided to try her luck with a lottery ticket bought online at EuroJackpot. Instead of choosing lucky numbers herself, she asked her mother, who texted her with 14, 19, 21, 30, 32 and the two Euro numbers 4 and 7.
Coming home after a long shift, Cristina decided to check the results, and she barely trusted her eyes as she guessed all 7 numbers correctly and managed to scoop a $96.3M lottery jackpot. What were the odds? Right after the win, Christina and her mother planned to live a careless life somewhere in a warmer climate.
Belgian Player – $23.6M Mega Moolah Progressive Jackpot
While Megabucks is a record-breaking slot for land-based operators, the Mega Moolah network is the most generous one in the online gambling world. In 2021, a fortunate Belgian player decided to place a bet on the Absolutely Mad Mega Moolah slot by Microgaming just to win a striking $23.6M progressive jackpot.
This slot, launched in 2020, is one of the reeled machines in the Mega Moolah network that pays out massive online gambling wins regularly. It is inspired by the Alice in Wonderland story and offers plenty of bonuses. Thus, generous payouts in bonus spins are also possible even if the progressive jackpot is not scooped.
Norwegian Player – $17M Arabian Nights Jackpot
Net Entertainment also has a lucrative progressive jackpot that can be scooped in several online slots. One of them is Arabian Nights, a 5-reeled machine inspired by the Middle East. This game was the one to bring an incredible $17M jackpot win to a Norwegian player in 2011. The jackpot was hit after a small bet of $0.1. Thus, it certainly creates a history with one of the biggest gambling wins scooped with small bets.
How Famous Players Hit Jackpots
We would be happy to tell you that there is a recipe that can allow you to scoop a progressive jackpot. Unfortunately, there isn’t. It is pure luck and a little bit of intuition to select the right numbers or a game and time to play.
Speaking of the choices, make sure to select a well-known and paying jackpot network like Mega Moolah to increase your chances of hitting a jackpot. Also, place smaller bets to make more spins. This way, you will try scooping a jackpot for a bigger number of times.
Final Thoughts
Each story behind the biggest gambling wins is life-changing. Most of them are positive and allow gamblers to live a careless life for many years. However, it is rare to hit a jackpot with just one bet, so those lucky players who walk away with massive wins usually wager for many years. Many of them have lost big sums before hitting a progressive jackpot that might never happen. Therefore, it is important not to lose your mind and gamble responsibly while chasing a progressive jackpot.