TEMECULA, Calif. – (November 17, 2025) – Madelaine and John R. of Los Angeles County have their weekly visits to Pechanga Resort Casino following their bowling league events to thank for becoming $584,840.58 richer. Every Tuesday, the couple laces up their bowling shoes, grabs their bowler bags and heads out to hit the lanes in Fullerton, Calif. They total up their high scores on the drive to Pechanga Resort Casino each week. The couple often then spends the night at Pechanga to enjoy a midweek getaway. Wednesday, November 12, Madelaine opted to play Pai Gow Poker before heading home. Within five minutes of playing, even though she switched seats a few times first, she turned over a winning hand that took her several moments to believe. She hit a straight flush in the hearts suit with one joker. With a $5.00 side bet pinned on potentially producing the game’s top hand, she took home the progressive jackpot of $584,840.58.
“I usually sit on the fourth seat on the left,” said Madelaine. “But this time, I moved to another seat. Nothing seemed to be happening, so I moved back to my original seat. The final card was a Joker. I just thought, ‘Wait a minute.’ Then I realized that was the straight flush. It’s so surreal. It’s still sinking in.”
With three adult daughters and five grandchildren, the couple says they have a lot of ideas of what to do with their pay day including helping one of their daughters through graduate school. But this couple also comes to win on the competitive bowling circuit and has lots of trips already planned to make their strikes against other amateur bowlers. They say the windfall will come in handy for those events, too.
Luck does seem to follow them a fair amount they admitted. Playing Pai Gow Poker at Pechanga Resort Casino last week, John got to one card away from the progressive jackpot. During another casino trip with their daughter after she turned 21, John and his daughter sat down to play Three Card Poker. On her very first hand as a 21-year-old, she won several hundred dollars.