How one homeless man turned $5 into $106k
A New Zealand man's life has turned upside down after his small wager turned into a big win.
Robert, who has been living in a garage for the last nine months, was pleasantly surprised when he noticed five extra zeros next to his account balance the day after the Melbourne Cup.
It tuned out that he had remarkably won NZ$106,000 ($97,781.29 AUD) from a $5 bet on the $8.4 million Cup, which was won by Without A Fight.
“It was quite an emotional process, mate,” Robert told the NZ Herald.
“I couldn’t believe it, and I thought to myself, ‘there must be something wrong here’.”
Robert, had placed the bet the day before the race at the Petone Working Men’s Club, and to his surprise found a green tick next to his first four Easybets.
Now, he intends to use the money to improve his life.
“I’ve gone from being homeless, sitting in a garage to finally being able to afford a deposit on a house now,” he said.
This is the first time in 22 years that a horse has won both the Caulfield and Melbourne Cup double.
Due to privacy reasons the Totalisator Agency Board (TAB) is unable to disclose further information on the wager.
Image: Vince Caligiuri/Getty Images