Press release

Montréal, July 26, 2019 — On July 15, eight poker players sitting at our online “bad beat” table bagged the $706,839 jackpot. The player with the highest ranking hand walked away with $176,709, while the player with the second-highest ranking hand (bad beat hand) won $353,419! The remaining six players at the table split the remainder of the pot. Talk about a fantastic start to a Monday morning!

In summary

• Game: Poker – Bad beat table on lotoquebec.com
• Prize won: $706,839
• Date of win: July 15, 2019
• Winners’ place of residence: Lanaudière (Martin Brodeur) and Laurentides (Raymond Ménard)
• Claim date and location: July 17, 2019, at the Casino de Montréal

Highlights

• So how did it all play out? The flop fell 3-of-spades, 4-of-spades and queen-of-clubs. The turn was a 5-of-spades. The river was a king-of-spades. Emotions were running high!

• Raymond Ménard was holding a 6- and 7-of-spades. With the knowledge that he was holding a nut flush—i.e. the best possible flush—he decided to go all in, confident that victory would be his. Meanwhile, Martin Brodeur was holding an ace-of-spades and 2-of-spades. Equally convinced that he could win, Martin decided to match Raymond’s bet.

• He then anxiously turned to his daughter: “If he turns over a 6- and 7-of-spades, I’ll lose, but I’ll be rich!” Martin did indeed lose the hand, but took home the biggest share (i.e. 50%) of the bad beat jackpot—$353,419. Raymond walked away with $176,709, i.e. the winning hand’s share of the pot.

• Our top two players were over the moon when they came to pick up their cheques at the Casino de Montréal. Raymond told us that he’d already made an appointment at the bank to invest a portion of his winnings, and that he intends to return to Cuba, this time for a couple of months. Martin said he bought himself a new motorcycle that same morning, and has plans to purchase a home.

About Loto-Québec

Loto-Québec’s mission is to responsibly and efficiently manage games of chance in a controlled and measured fashion in the interest of all Quebecers. Entertainment is at the heart of its activities. Between January 1 and July 23, 2019, Loto-Québec paid out 46 prizes of $1,000,000 or more, turning 48 people into millionaires. The Gagnant à vie and Grande Vie lotteries have provided 15 lucky winners with a lifetime annuity. Winners of large prizes are listed on the Winners page of the Lotteries site.