Pocatello Downs | 500+ Slots, Table Games & Full-Service Dining

I was just killing time on a Thursday afternoon, my shift at the warehouse had ended early and I figured I'd spend an hour at Pocatello before heading home. I'd been playing the same machine for maybe thirty minutes when that progressive bell started going off. My hands were shaking so bad I could barely hit the button to call someone over. The manager came over and confirmed it—$127,500. I just kept saying 'no way, no way' over and over. My wife thinks I'm crazy for spending money there, but this changes everything. We're paynig off the truck and finally putting a down payment on a house we've been looking at.

I grew up in Pocatello and haven't been back to the Downs in maybe fifteen years, but my buddy convinced me to come with him for his birthday weekend. I'm not really a gambler, more of a casual player, so I sat down at a blackjack table just to hang out. Got on a run where everything was going my way—doubling down when I should, the dealer kept busting. By the time I realized what was happening I was way up. My friend said I had this goofy grin on my face the whole time. I'm using it to finally take my family on a real vacation, somewhere we've never been before.

I'd been playing poker seriously for about three years, mostly online and home games with friends, so when the Pocatello tournament came up I figured why not test myself. The first day I was just trying to survive playing tight, but I caught some good cards and made some solid reads. By the final table I was in third chip position and honestly feeling confident. Then I got lucky—flopped a straight against someone's set and that put me over the top. When I won the last hand I just sat there in shock for a second. This is life-changing money. I'm going back to school to finish my degree and taking some time off work to really focus on it.

My mom passed away six months before this happened, and I was having one of those rough days where I just needed to get out of the house. I went to Pocatello Downs kind of aimless, threw some money at roulette because I didn't really care. Then I hit on my mom's favorite number—she always played 27. I literally teared up when that ball landed there. The lady next to me asked if I was okay and I told her about my mom, and she got teary too. I know it's probably superstition but it felt like something, you know? I'm using half of it for her medical debts she left behind and taking my sister on the trip mom always wanted to take.

I work construction and we'd just wrapped up a big project right before the holidays, so I had some extra cash burning a hole in my pocket. Went to Pocatello with a budddy on a Saturday night and we were just having fun, not expecting anything serious. Hit the Buffalo Gold machine and got that free spins bonus—kept retriggering and retriggering. I was jumping up and down like an idiot. My buddy was filming it on his phone because he knew nobody would believe me otherwise. I already got the check sorted out to my contractor buddy who helped me through a rough patch last year.

I'm retired and my wife said I spend too much time sitting around the house, so I started going to the casino once or twice a month just to get out and socialize. Three Card Poker is my game—you can actually use some strategy and it keeps my mind sharp. This particular night I was playing conservativly, maybe up fifty bucks, then got a straight flush. The dealer had to verify it twice which was funny. My wife actually came with me that night and was happy I finally caught a big one instead of just breaking even. We're taking our grandkids to Disneyland this summer because of it.