For most people, a trip to the casino is a form of entertainment where the dream of a life-changing win is part of the thrill. These stories of incredible luck serve as a testament to the unpredictable nature of gambling. Here are some of the most famous and largest casino wins in history.
The Megabucks Jackpot: A Software Engineer's $39.7 Million Win
The record for the biggest-ever slot win was set in Las Vegas in 2003 at the Excalibur. A 25-year-old software engineer from Los Angeles decided to play the famous Megabucks slot machine while waiting for a basketball game to start. After feeding about $100 into the machine, he hit the jackpot of a lifetime. The win amounted to an incredible $39.7 million, paid out over 25 years. He wisely opted to keep his identity private, casino becoming a legend in the process.
Don Johnson: The Man Who "Broke" Atlantic City's Blackjack Tables
Sometimes, casino a big win is about more than just a lucky spin. Don Johnson, a corporate executive, famously won over $15 million from a trio of Atlantic City casinos in just six months.
He didn't use card counting to achieve this feat. Johnson, a savvy businessman, negotiated special rules with the casinos before he even started playing. These included a 20% "loss rebate" (where the casino would refund him 20% of his losses if they reached a certain amount), the ability to bet up to $100,000 per hand, and favorable rules like splitting and casino (atuttavita.com) doubling down on any four cards. With these conditions, he played with a positive expectation, casino a rare feat in casino gaming. His incredible run caused some casinos to change their high-roller policies, and he was eventually banned from many establishments.
Elmer Sherwin: The Man Who Struck Lightning Twice
Winning a massive jackpot once is a statistical miracle. Winning it twice is almost unbelievable. This is the incredible story of Elmer Sherwin. He first won $4.6 million on a Megabucks machine in 1989 at the grand opening of The Mirage. He traveled extensively with his winnings but never gave up on his dream of winning again. Incredibly, 16 years later, in 2005, at the age of 92, he did it again. He won a staggering $21.1 million jackpot on another Megabucks machine at the Cannery Casino. Sherwin generously donated much of his second win to charity, including relief efforts for Hurricane Katrina victims.