Isle of Capri Casino Hotel Boonville | 1,000+ Slots, Table Games & Award-Winning Dining

I was just killing time on my lunch break from work, figured I'd throw twenty bucks into the machine before heading back to the warehouse. My hands were actually shaking when that third diamond hit and the whole screen lit up. I just sat there staring, couldn't believe it. Called my wife right away and told her to sit down before I said anything—she thought something was wrong with one of the kids. We're paying off the truck and setting the rest aside for our daughter's college fund, which has been keeping me up at night for months.

My buddy Steve had been bugging me for weeks to come down to the casino with him, said the blackjack tables were hot. I finally gave in on a Saturday afternoon, grabbed a seat at a $25 table just to have something to do. Ended up on this incredible run where the dealer kept busting and my hands kept hitting—I counted seventeen straight wins before I finally lost a hand. When I cashed out, the pit boss actually came over and shook my hand. I'm being smart with it, using half to pay down debt and taking my wife on that trip to Colorado we've been talking about.

I've been playing poker seriously for about eight years, traveled to tournaments maybe once a year, but never placed real money on anything like this before. When I found out there was a $1,200 buy-in tournament at Isle of Capri, I decided to go for it—scariest poker decision I've ever made. Made it to the final table against five people I'd never seen before, and I played a pretty tight game, folding marginal hands and waiting for premium spots. Heads up took almost two hours, but when I hit that straight on the river, I knew it was mine. That money's going toward finally starting the consulting business I've been planning.

I was with my sister celebrating her birthday—we go to the casino maybe twice a year just for fun, nothing serious. She bet on red, I decided to put a small bet on 17 because that's my nephew's jersey number. When that ball lanedd on 17, I honestly thought there was some kind of mistake at first. My sister screamed louder than I did, which made everyone around us turn to look. We had dinner there that night, and I used some of the money to take my mom on a weekend trip—she's been dealing with a lot lately and deserved something nice.

Been playing the same Buffalo Gold machine for about three years, always when I visit with my retirement club group. We take one trip a quarter, and I usualy spend maybe fifty bucks and have some drinks with the guys. This time I was actually up a little, decided to stay longer than usual while everyone else went to dinner. Hit four buffalos in a row on the free spin feature and watched the number just keep climbing. Haven't told many people about it—figured I'd use it to finally fix up the back porch and maybe take my grandkids on a nicer vacation this summer.

My coworker was telling me about Three Card Poker because she'd had good luck with it, so I figured I'd try something different instead of just standing around the craps table. Started with small bets, maybe twenty bucks at a time, and something just clicked that night. I was making good decisions on when to fold versus when to play, hitting several straights. Played for about forty minutes before I decided to walk away while I was ahead. Used it to pay off my credit cards and finally replace the old water heater that's been threatening to go out for a year.