A Buderim man walked to work this morning with an extra spring in his step and a beaming smile, fresh from winning a $239,000 Keno prize in a recent draw.
The hardworking Sunshine Coast local scored the Keno Classic 9 Spot jackpot in draw 46, drawn Sunday 1 December 2024. He won a total of $239,313.50.
The gleeful winner was still buzzing with excitement when an official from Keno called him to confirm his newfound treasure.
“I’m absolutely fantastic as you can imagine. I’m absolutely over the moon,” he said.
“I had to come to work today but there’s no wiping this smile off my face.
“I’ve played Keno for a little while now, dabbling every now and then, usually with six numbers. But a lad there suggested trying the Spot 7, 8, or 9 for a chance at the jackpot prize.
“First, I tried the Spot 7, then moved on to Spot 8, and I eventually started playing Spot 9. I’ll definitely have to thank him — because of his advice, I’ve won!
“It’s almost a quarter of a million dollars so it’s pretty huge!
“When I saw all my numbers come up, I went ‘Oh my god!’ and just started waving my hands in the air.
“Funny thing is, I’d just changed two of my regular numbers, won $20, and then decided to replay the ticket with those numbers a couple of times. Now, here I am!”
The thrilled Queenslander plans to use his bounty to make Christmas extra special for his family.
“It’s just amazing. It’s come just in time for Christmas and it’s going to really help our family,” he said.
“Thank you so much. The Creek Tavern is my new favourite place now!”
The winning man’s winning Keno Classic entry was purchased from The Creek Tavern, 1172 Karawatha Dr, Mountain Creek.
The Creek Tavern venue manager Damien Strong said the team was ecstatic for their local winner.
“We’re thrilled. What a way to finish the year off!” he said.
“We know the winner as he’s a local and it’s bloody fantastic. He’s a great bloke.
“This is the best bit of the job when these things happen. The win has gone to a very good home, and we couldn’t be happier.
“We sold a major prize of over $160,000 just a few months ago, so it’s fair to say it’s been a lucky year.
“We’ll be letting all our patrons know the good news. Hopefully another local takes a win here again soon.”
In FY24, Keno players across the eastern states of mainland Australia celebrated more than 78.5 million wins collectively worth more than $1.16 billion.
During this time, Keno crowned 18 millionaires and multi-millionaires who collectively took home more than $46.7 million. Nine of these major winners were Queenslanders, including a Kallangur man who won $8.45 million after scoring the Keno Classic and Keno Mega Millions 10 Spot jackpots in the one draw.
Queenslanders enjoyed more than 28.5 million Keno wins totalling more than $441.6 million at pubs and clubs across the state in FY24.