A Cairns woman in her 60s has had an extravagant start to the year after accidentally selecting one different number from her regular Keno numbers, only for the happy mistake to lead to a $2.9 million win.
The Sunshine State resident scored the Keno Classic 10 Spot jackpot in Keno draw 896 on Friday 2 January 2026. She can look forward to a total prize of $2,973,012.20.
It was a winning week for Queenslanders, as only two days later, a Gladstone man bagged the second biggest Keno prize in history.
When an official from Keno spoke with the winning Cairns woman, she shared she was still wrapping her head around reality.
“Thank you! I’m so great today, although it actually still hasn’t fully sunk in,” she laughed.
“The funny thing is I always play the same numbers but this particular time, I accidentally selected 71 instead of 61 but I just left it. I’m so glad I did!
“No one really knows about it yet. I only told my husband yesterday. I poured a glass of wine for us and said, ‘Guess what!’.
“I just can’t believe it. We knew straight away that the first thing we’re going to do is buy a house or an apartment.
“I wasn’t watching the game, but someone next to me said there’d been a big win in the venue of almost $3 million. I just thought, ‘Oh my god! I hope it’s me!’.
“Then I checked my ticket, and the screen said to call in. My heart started pounding. I started checking my ticket on every machine, and the same message kept coming up.
“I didn’t panic or celebrate initially. I just wanted to make sure it was true!
“It’s the best news ever. I’m going to help all my siblings and family members.
“I’m in my 60s so you have no idea how much it means! Thank you!”
Her winning Keno Classic entry was purchased at Cazalys Cairns, 344 Mulgrave Road, Cairns.
Cazalys Cairns group general manager Jason Wale said he was thrilled the venue had sold another major prize-winning Keno entry.
“Wow! What a way to start the New Year! The staff and customers were super excited for the winner,” he said.
“This is our fourth big win here, including a previous entry that scored $5.9 million! There is no doubt we are the luckiest place in town!
“Congratulations to our latest major Keno winner! We wish you all the very best. Thank you for supporting us.”
In FY25, Keno players across the eastern states of mainland Australia celebrated more than 76 million wins collectively worth more than $1.2 billion.
During this time, Keno crowned 20 millionaires and multi-millionaires who collectively took home more than $57.9 million. Four of these major winners were Queenslanders, including a Townsville man who scored $4.4 million.
Queenslanders enjoyed more than 27.3 million Keno wins totalling more than $450.7 million at pubs and clubs across the state in FY25.