Photograph of the winning screen at Resorts World NYC. Photo via Resorts World.
Resorts World NYC has announced its first ever $1 million jackpot winner after a lucky New York City resident won big early on Thursday morning.
The casino, which became the first full casino in New York City last month when it launched live table games, announced that a guest scooped a $1,009,357.41 grand prize while playing the Aristocrat Million Dollar Dragon Link progressive slot machine, becoming the first player in the casino’s history to top $1 million on a single slot machine.
The winner, a New York City resident who works in Manhattan and wished to remain anonymous, hit the game’s jackpot during the machine’s free spins bonus feature by filling the screen with all 15 coin-like symbols shortly after 1 a.m. on May 14.
Robert DeSalvio, president of Genting Americas East, parent company of Resorts World NYC, described the win as “monumental.”
“This is a monumental moment not only for one incredibly lucky New Yorker, but for Resorts World New York City and the entire state,” DeSalvio said in a statement.
He claimed the win also highlighted the “positive economic impact” that casinos have on New York State by pointing to the windfall that the state is slated to receive from the $1 million payout.
“When our guests win big, New York wins big,” DeSalvio said.
Resorts World officially opened 242 live table games at an April 28 ribbon-cutting ceremony, marking the first time that table games have operated in the city. The company also opened a new floor featuring 2,507 commercial casino slots as part of Tuesday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Resorts World, which previously operated as a “racino” featuring slot machines but no live games, was one of three developments to receive a downstate gaming license from the state’s Gaming Commission last December, alongside the Bally’s development in the Bronx and fellow Queens site Metropolitan Park.