A Belrose man admitted he was shocked the person who won a Keno 8 Spot prize of more than $79,000 was taking so long to claim their prize — only to realise he was the winner.
The New South Wales patron held a Keno Classic 8 Spot winning entry in game 173 played on Wednesday 29 July 2020 worth $79,389.90.
Speaking with an official from Keno today, the overjoyed winner admitted he was still reeling from the discovery.
“It’s very exciting!” he exclaimed.
“I was actually at the club when the win happened.
“I usually play ten numbers, but I decided to change it up and play eight instead.
“It came up on the screen that someone had won the 8 Spot prize.
“Because I usually play ten, I didn’t even think it could be me. I completely forgot I’d played eight instead.
“My mates and I were looking around the club, saying ‘Who could it be?’. We just kept looking at the flashing screen and saying ‘God they’re taking their time! Where are they?’.
“Later that evening I was walking out of the club and the staff said no one had claimed the prize.
“I decided to check the ticket again and realised I had eight numbers. That’s when I started to think it really could be me.
“They checked my ticket and said ‘Yep, it’s you!’.
“I was shocked! It’s odd isn’t it!
“Particularly around these times, things are tough, money is tight, so this win is amazing!
“It’s a godsend!
“It’s life-changing for me.
“We had a nice dinner and a drink to celebrate.
“I couldn’t sleep last night! I was just thinking of what to do.
“I had to stay up and watch TV instead.”
When asked how he planned to enjoy his Keno fun money, the stoked bloke admitted he had plenty of ideas.
“We want to go on a trip somewhere when we can. I can’t wait to go to the footy or go on a golfing trip,” he shared.
“Today we will do some more celebrating too. I want to take it a bit easy.
“I want to go to the beach and do some whale watching.”
The winning Keno Classic 8 Spot winning entry was purchased at Belrose Bowling Club, 146 Forest Way, Belrose.
Between 1 July 2019 and 30 June 2020, Keno players across the eastern states of mainland Australia celebrated more than 58.4 million wins collectively worth more than $776.79 million.
During this time, Keno crowned 17 millionaires and multi-millionaires who collectively took home more than $38.72 million. Ten of these major winners were from New South Wales and the ACT, including a Newcastle woman who was stunned to pocket a Keno Mega Millions 10 Spot prize of more than $5.4 million.
Players in New South Wales and the ACT enjoyed more than 26.69 million Keno wins totalling more than $386.39 million in the 12 months to 30 June 2020.
Keno players can also enter into the monthly second chance draw for the chance to win $10,000 by scanning their ticket at win.secondchance.keno.com.au.