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Topics: News, World News, Money, New Zealand, Sport
Niamh Shackleton
Topics: News, World News, Money, New Zealand, Sport
A homeless man is now able to afford a home after placing a tiny $5 bet.
Robert - who didn't want to share his surname - put a bet on the Melbourne Cup and went on to pocket over 2,000 times the amount he put on.
The New Zealand man went to his local working man's club to watch the race following his bet and, after the race, checked his TAB account to find a huge amount of cash sitting there for him to withdraw.
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Robert said the discovery was 'quite an emotional process' and, like many of us would, he enjoyed a few celebratory drinks afterwards with his newfound $106,000 winnings.
"I couldn’t believe it, and I thought to myself, ‘there must be something wrong here’," he told the New Zealand Herald.
"I went into my easybets and realised that there was a green tick next to my $5 first four easybets with $106,000."
After splurging on a few drinks, Robert said his first priority is to buy a home with the cash in light of him living in a garage for the past nine months.
“I’ve gone from being homeless, sitting in a garage to finally being able to afford a deposit on a house now,” Robert said.
Online sports and horse racing betting site TAB confirmed to the New Zealand Herald that the $106,000 came from Robert's $5 bet.
Robert follows USA-based Cameron Craig in hitting the big time with a measly $5 bet.
Back in January, Cameron placed a four-leg parlay bet on the NFL Conference Championships and guessed the four players to score the first touchdown in all four Divisional Round games.
After he successfully hit his first three wagers, Cameron was offered the chance to cash out with almost $1,400 - but he chose to sit tight and see how his fourth and final wager played out.
And his confidence paid off as Cowboys tight end Dalton Schultz scored a touchdown.
Following this, Cameron managed to turn his $5 bet into an impressive $72,795.
Footage was posted online at the time of Cameron's win where he could be seen celebrating.
"Life changing money!! Can’t believe that just happened!! Here’s my reaction live," he penned next to the clip.
"For anybody saying that’s not life changing. My loans are now paid off and I’m debt free."
What a time to be alive.