Massive jackpot hits at Beau Rivage as the casino celebrates its 25th anniversary
As the Beau Rivage Resort & Casino in Biloxi was preparing for the 25th anniversary party in March, a slot player was celebrating a ‘life-changing’ win.
The lucky spin came March 8, when a Wheel of Fortune slots player won $1,254,996.
The person was playing a $1 denomination Wheel of Fortune Triple Gold Gold Spin at the Beau Rivage.
The winner declined to allow their identity to be revealed.
This was the largest jackpot on the Coast since November 2022, when a player won a $1,179,313.22 jackpot at the Beau Rivage, also on a wide area $1 denomination Wheel of Fortune slot machine.
The Biloxi win also was one of four million dollar-plus jackpots totaling more than $5 million on International Game Technology slot machines in March. The others were:
▪ $1.6 million on March 12 on a Wheel of Fortune Triple Gold Gold Spin Megatower at The Venetian Resort Las Vegas in Nevada.
▪ $1.2 million March 30 on a Wheel of Fortune Gold Spin Triple Red Hot 7s at California Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nev.
▪ $1.1 million March 22 on a Wheel of Fortune Lucky Coins On Stage at Chances Casino Kelowna in British Columbia, Canada.
Wheel of Fortune machines have created more than 1,100 millionaires and awarded over $3.5 billion in jackpots since the game’s launch in 1996, the company said.
The largest jackpot at a Coast casino was on a Wheel of Fortune slot machine at Hard Rock Biloxi, when the late Thomas McMillan of Woolmarket won over $14 million on his lucky machine. It remains the largest jackpot in Mississippi.
This was the first major jackpot won on the Coast this year. In 2023, seven players hit jackpots of $100,000 or more.
Coast’s top 10 slot jackpots
▪ $14.4 million: March 2009 at Hard Rock Casino. Won by Tommy McMillan of Woolmarket on Wheel of Fortune Dollar
▪ $13.8 million: May 2003 at Isle of Capri. Won by Chris Loewen of Mobile on Jeopardy Quarter
▪ $12.8 million: March 2003 at Treasure Bay Casino. Won by David and Janice Stacks of Gulfport on Megabucks
▪ $9.9 million: December 2002 at Beau Rivage Casino. Won by Barbara Jane Thornburg, Arlington, Tenn., on Wheel of Fortune Dollar
▪ $8.2 million: March 2006 at Isle of Capri. Won by Katherine Salvant of Metairie. La., playing Wheel of Fortune Quarters
▪ $8.1 million: September 1999 at Beau Rivage. Won by Micah David Bass of Orlando, Fla., on Wheel of Fortune Dollar
▪ $8.1 million: March 1998 at Grand Biloxi. Won by Gary Jernigan of Opelika, Ala., on Wheel of Fortune Dollar
▪ $7.7 million: November 2001 at Grand Casino Gulfport. Won by Alfreda Edelinski, of Long Beach on Wheel of Fortune Quarters
▪ $7.2 million: April 2005 at Grand Casino Gulfport. Won by Tom Madison of Picayune on Megabucks Dollar
▪ $7.2 million: February 2013 at Palace Casino Biloxi. Won by 73-year-old Michigan resident on a WMS The Lord of the Rings penny slot. It was the largest win on a WMS wide-area progressive slot machine at the time.
