Choctaw Travel Plaza Idabel | Gaming, Dining & Travel Stop in Oklahoma

I'd been coming to Choctaw Travel Plaza maybe once a month for years, just playing the slots while my husband grabbed coffee. That morning I was up early, couldn't sleep, so I drove over around 6 AM. I sat down at this machine I'd never really noticed before and within twenty minutes, boom—the whole thing lit up. I just froze. I kept hitting the spin button thinking I was dreaming. When the attendant came over and confirmed it was real, I actually cried. My daughter's been wanting to go back to school and now she can without the student loans.

My buddy Mike insisted we go to the casino on New Year's weekend—said we needed to get out of the house. I'm not usually a blackjack guy, more of a poker player, but the table looked good so I sat down. I went in with like two hundred bucks, expecting to lose it like always. Instead I got hot. Really hot. The dealer kept busting, I kept hitting on 16 and getting lucky. After about an hour and a half, I cashed out nearly ninety grand. I was shaking so bad I could hardly sign the recept. Mike was losing his mind. I paid off my truck loan—that alone felt amazing.

I'd been playing in the weekly tournaments at Choctaw for three years, never made it past the second round. This time felt different though. I was focused, playing tight, and the cards were cooperating. By the final table, I could feel it. My hands were steady even when the stakes got crazy. Heads-up against this older gentleman—he was good, really good—but I caught him on a bluff. When I won that final hand, I just sat there for a moment before it hit me. My wife wants to open a small business, and this gives us the capital to actually do it without risking everything.

My mom had just passed away two months earlier, and I was really struggling. I didn't want to be home that evening—too quiet, too many memories. I went to the casino just to be around people and noise. I played some slots, walked around, ended up at the roulette table. I wasn't even thinking clearly, just betting on numbers that meant something to my mom—her birthday, her lucky number. Then one of her numbers hit. I put it back down, it hit again. I couldn't stop shaking. I took it as a sign, you know? Like she was telling me it was okay to move forward. I'm using some of it for her headstone, finally getting it done right.

I was at the Travel Plaza grabbing fuel and a sandwich on my way back from Oklahoma City when I figured I had an hour to kill. Decided to spend fifty bucks on slots, which is about my usual limit. I found the Buffalo Gold machine and just kept feeding it. Next thing I know the screen's going crazy with buffalos everywhere. The sound started drawing people over. I got really quite because I didn't want to jinx it, but when those final spins finished and the total came up, I actually laughed out loud. First thing I did was call my mom and tell her I could finally help her with her hospital bills.

I've always liked Three Card Poker because the hands move fast and you can actually have conversations with the dealer. I was in a good mood that day, joking around with the other players. Made a joke about how I was due for a win, and the dealer laughed and said, 'Well, let's see.' My next hand was a straight flush. I couldn't beleive it. Everyone at the table went nuts. The older lady next to me patted my shoulder like I'd just won the lottery. I'm putting most of it toward my retirement fund, but I'm taking my granddaughter to Disney World in the spring—that was the dream.