“Big Mo” hit the big money with his 5-spot Keno wager.
Longtime Lottery player experiments with 5-spot wager, finds big win
A longtime Lottery player who goes by “Big Mo” is about to start a college fund for a lucky young relative, thanks to a $30,000 Keno win.
The Anne Arundel County resident has enjoyed all kinds of luck playing Keno over the years. However, when he discovered he won $30,000 on a quick-pick ticket, “Big Mo” was so startled he grabbed his phone to call his Keno buddy.
“I was in shock,” recalled “Big Mo.” The big win occurred while he was sitting in his vehicle outside Royal Farms #133 in Glen Burnie watching his Keno game play on his smartphone. The 52-year-old machinist said he has enjoyed a bit of a winning streak this year.
In May, he won $2,500 and put the lucky ticket in a drawer at home. His wife got tired of looking at it, said “Big Mo,” and got his OK to cash it on the day Tropical Storm Ida passed through Maryland.
That same day, he visited a 7-Eleven in Glen Burnie and landed a $4,000 prize.
“Big Mo” said his strategy is to start his Keno play with a $10 bet that includes the Bonus feature.
“I always say don’t gamble what you can’t afford to lose,” he said. “If I win, I play more, if I don’t, I go home.” He also has two superstitions. “I can’t win unless I cash the last ticket,” he said, “and I don’t usually rush out and cash them.”
“Big Mo” typically places 2-spot or 3-spot wagers, but on Sept. 2 he decided to try a 5-spot wager with the Super Bonus. He checked the odds of winning on his phone before his game started to play and didn’t like what he saw. Then, his game began and his outlook brightened.
“The first three numbers came up and I thought, ‘Nice.’ The fourth number came up and I thought, ‘Sweet.’ Then the last number came up and I was in shock.”
With a base wager of $20 and a 5x Super Bonus multiplier on his winning game, “Big Mo’s” prize ballooned to $30,000. He plans to put most of the prize into a college fund for the five-year-old relative that he and his wife are raising. The grandfather of two also plans to have some fun with his winnings.
Royal Farms #133 also gets to celebrate. For selling a winning Keno ticket of $30,000, the store located at 930 Cromwell Park Drive in Glen Burnie earns a bonus of $300 from the Lottery.
