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Queensland tradie wins $5.1m and quits his job on the spot

A tradie has laid down his tools for good after finding out that he’d won Queensland’s largest-ever Keno jackpot.

The Mackay man, in his 40s, won more than $5.1 million in a Keno game on Sunday evening at Magpies Sporting Club.

“I think I might retire now, thank you very much. I’m not going to work tomorrow,” he told Keno officials.

The man had been playing the same numbers – a mix of birthdays and favourite numbers – for the past two years and had previously won $800 off those numbers.

“This is something else!” he said.

A stock image showing Keno game cards and a pile of pencils.
The tradie announced his working days were over after the jackpot win. Source: Keno

“At first, they said ‘you’ve won more than $5,000’, and I thought ‘oh, that’s good’. Then I saw on the screen the jackpot had been won and I started to think ‘maybe it’s me?’

“When they told me the amount, I just couldn’t believe it. It hasn’t sunk in. I’m holding on tight to this ticket and I’m going to go home and I’ll be wrapping myself in cotton wool until I get the cheque!”

The tradie said he and his wife planned to put money aside for their children’s future.

“It’s not all about me, I’ve got a lovely family to share it with. It just still hasn’t sunk in yet.

“For now, we’re going to go home, sit down and take it all in. We’re multi-millionaires now – that sounds very, very good.”

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