Hey, Millionaire! Everybody who enters a casino with their hard-earned cash goes there with one
thing on their mind - the dream of winning big. Of course, they know that winning isn't always on the
cards, but the dream of beating the house lives on. Whether it's a huge jackpot on the slots,
a royal flush hand in video poker or a winning streak at the blackjack tables, the chance of
winning the big bucks unites all players. But sometimes, what seems like an impossible dream
come true can turn out to be nothing but an illusion. This is just one case of high hopes
being smashed. This story is pretty crazy, so keep watching to find out exactly what happened!
Katrina Bookman is a mother of four who did everything she could for her kids despite
not having much money. When she was playing the slots, she had hoped to help fulfill her
son's long-time dream of owning a barbershop. Katrina grabbed everybody's attention when she
appeared to have won the largest jackpot in the history of US slot machines. In August 2016,
the 44-year-old Katrina Bookman decided to play The Sphinx Wild game, playing for only 40 cents
per spin on the "penny machine." Katrina and her partner couldn't believe their eyes
when the game screen lit up and froze in place. Everyone knows that's the sign of a big jackpot.
And it was. She'd hit a $43 million win. She could hardly believe that only a few spins on the slot
machine at the Resorts World Casino in Jamaica, New York, had changed her life for the better.
She excitedly took a selfie with the screen. This sort of thing doesn't happen very often.
But Katrina wasn't your average person. She had grown up in foster care and was homeless in her
youth. This sort of thing doesn't often happen to people like her. We can only imagine how excited
she was. But it didn't last long. It all took a wrong turn when the casino management asked her
to leave the gaming floor and return the next day. This was obviously not what she wanted to hear,
so she asked what she had won. The only response she got was, "You didn't win nothing."
What would you have done in Katrina's position? Tell us in the comments!
Katrina did what she was told and came back the next day. When she arrived, the casino
told her their gaming rules. They claimed that even though she hit the massive $43 million
jackpot, it was just a machine error. Still, she shouldn't be disappointed because they
could offer her a complimentary steak dinner and $2.25 instead - the amount
they claimed she actually won on that spin. Can you imagine how horribly let down Katrina
must have felt? Her slot machine at Resorts World Casino had lit up with all the bells
and noises and a message that she had won a historical jackpot of over $43 million.
She had immediately felt the relief of an end to her struggles. But now, the higher
authorities at the casino denied the claim. The offer of $2.25 and the free steak dinner
as compensation for the inconvenience didn't match up to Katrina's dream coming true.
She turned their offer down with crushing disappointment and decided to contact an attorney.
According to Katrina, a standard slot machine game, like the Sphinx Wild game she was playing,
isn't connected to progressive jackpot networks. So, if a machine takes the
money when the player loses, it stands to reason it must pay when they win.
In a statement, Resorts World representative Dan Blank said that the casino personnel determined
that the figure displayed on the penny slot resulted from an obvious malfunction. This
was later confirmed by the New York State Gaming Commission. Like every slot machine in the world,
The Sphinx Wild slot featured the disclaimer that a malfunction "voids all pays and plays."
This disclaimer provides the casino with protection in cases like hers. Had Katrina won the
titanic jackpot of almost $43 million, she would have broken the record for slot machine payouts.
The record is over $39 million and was won by an anonymous player at the Excalibur casino in Las
Vegas in 2003. Critically this haul was claimed on the Megabucks slot, which has a $10 million
starting point. According to the commission, Katrina was playing The Sphinx Wild slot,
which is a standard slot. The posted maximum payout for a standard slot stands at $6 500. It
is not linked to any wide-area progressive jackpot networks. This is a decent payout, but it doesn't
come close to the amount she believed to be hers. They maintained that Katrina should have been
aware that progressive jackpot games can't pay out the largest jackpot ever won in American casinos.
Bookman's attorney Alan Ripka demanded a detailed explanation from Resorts Works
about the nature of the malfunction. They refused to give any further comment on the topic
and did not explain. The attorney said that the ordeal had caused Katrina a substantial financial
setback and mental anguish. I'm sure any of us would have felt the same - it's a pretty tough
pill to swallow, and all their explanations feel like they're trying to wiggle out of paying her,
whether they're right or not. He continued to insist that it was highly unfair on the part of
the casino to keep the money that they had lost to Katrina on the Sphinx Wild machine. He also
argued that they should at least pay the $6 500, which is the maximum payout for the machine. Ripka
also questioned if there was adequate maintenance and inspection of lottery equipment and machines
on the part of the casino management. They had hoped that inadequate maintenance would mean that
there was a possibility that Resort World winners would never get the chance of actually winning.
But the defendants remained tight-lipped. In the Katrina Bookman verdict, there was
no news of a settlement among Resorts World Casino, Katrina, and NYSGC. Her claim was denied,
and the facts in her case stated that Sphinx Wild does not offer multi-million dollar jackpot wins.
It continues to insist that the malfunctioning of the slot machine voids all payouts. These results
confirm the legal rule set by previous slot machine malfunction cases. In a previous case,
a ninety-year-old lady in Iowa City won the jackpot worth $41 million playing a sports game.
Once again, there were doubts about the win, but the Supreme court ruled in favor of Isle Casino
Hotel. The court found that a provable malfunction had caused the screen to present an unusually high
payout. Shielded by business-friendly state regulations and the ever-present "malfunction
voids all pays and plays" labels, casinos always have the upper hand in cases like this.
Slot machines equipped with a Random Number Generator can malfunction.
This is why the label is used to protect their businesses. But none of this makes anyone feel
any better about having their dreams crushed. Do you think they should have paid out both wins?
Give us your opinion in the comments! Katrina has been awarded nothing yet as her
case is still pending. She feels that it's really unfair when people win, and the house doesn't want
to payout. She said, "When the machine takes your money, you lose it, so if you win, it should pay."
Her lawyers argued that their client should, at the very least, receive the machine's maximum
payout of $6500. She happily agreed and told local news outlets that she would be content
with that outcome. But they didn't seem happy to give her that either. She is now trying to get
the $43 million. But this time, her lawyers are arguing it's for significant anguish and damage
caused to her mental health and her financial loss. Katrina is still demanding an explanation
of how the machine malfunctioned. Her lawyer also claimed Resorts World and IGT were negligent.
People go to the casino with only one aim: to win. That is why so many people play slot games.
However, winning isn't guaranteed in a casino slot machine if it malfunctions.
Luckily this is apparently quite rare. But if this does happen, any record-setting jackpot
win is worth nothing. And that's a terrible thing to go through. In Katrina Bookman's case,
the extravagant slot machine win was just an illusion from the beginning.
This tragic experience shows that even a gigantic win can just be a pipe dream. Spending years
grinding away at the machines, spin after spin, to finally hit the jackpot is a truly life-changing
experience. The crushing pain of watching your dreams slip through your fingers as quickly as
they landed in your hands must be devastating. Often, big wins can be too good to be true,
but if you're gambling in casinos, you want to be sure your win is legit. Katrina surely thought
she'd be recieving any money she was told she'd won, but she didn't. But I have to wonder how
often the machine can malfunction at other times and not show when you really have won? Should
casinos be on the hook regardless of malfunction? Can you claim a machine is broken because you just
don't want to pay? And, if so, does that mean that people who play there have zero chance of winning?
Hopefully, we'll never hear another story like this. I sure hope it doesn't happen to me.