Harrah's Phoenix Ak Chin Casino Resort | 1,000+ Slots, Table Games & Fine Dining

I was just killing time on a Tuesday afternoon, had about an hour before my shift at the warehouse started. Decided to throw twenty bucks into this machine by the north entrance and honestly wasn't paying attention. Then I hear this crazy noise and lights everywhere, and the machine's going nuts. I had to sit down for a minute because my hands were shaking so bad. I'm using it to pay off my truck and my sister's medical bills—she's finally going to get the surgery she's needed for two years.

My buddy convinced me to come down from Flagstaff for the weekend, said we should hit the tables at Harrah's. I'm not relaly a gambler, but I sat down at blackjack with like fifty bucks, just for fun. Next thing I know it's three hours later and I'm up eighty-nine grand. The dealer kept saying 'You're on a run, man' and I just kept doubling down. I couldn't believe it was real money. I'm paying off my student loans, finally, and putting the rest toward a house down payment.

I've been playing poker seriously for about five years, traveling to different casinos on weekends. The tournament here had a pretty good field and I felt prepared. By the final table I was in fourth position in chips, and I just played tight, smart poker. When I got heads-up against this older guy, I had patience—that's what won it. My hands were trembling when they handed me the check. My wife wants to take a real vacation for once, not a gambling trip, and I'm investing most of it for our kids' college, but I might get myself a new truck too.

I lost my job two weeks before and was feeling pretty low about myself, honestly. My mom suggested I take a night off and go to the casino, just to get out of the house. I put some money on red at the roulette wheel almost without thinking, and when it hit I just stared at it. The pit boss had to tell me congratulations before I even realized what happened. I've got some breathing room now while I look for a new job—no more panic attacks about bills for a few months at least.

My retirement party was the day before I went to the casino. Forty-two years with the same company and I was feeling a little lost, you know, without that routine. So I went down and played Buffalo Gold—always liked that machine. Hit the bonus round and kept getting those free spins, more and more money piling up on the screen. I remember thinking my wife wasn't even going to beleive me. We're taking a cross-country RV trip this summer, something we've talked about for years but never had the nerve to do.

I was there with my coworkers after a company dinner, and they were all heading to different tables. I'm not really into slots so I wandered over to Three Card Poker. The beauty of that game is it's simple—you just have to get lucky with good cards. I stayed for maybe an hour, bet conservatively, and hit a really nice run with pair plus hands. When I cashed out I thought, this is my chance to finally fix up my garage and maybe get a decent toolset for my side gigs.