ATLANTIC CITY, New Jersey – All week, Sammy Zabib was getting an earful from his girlfriend for forgetting to buy her a pair of designer jeans she spotted in a casino boutique last weekend.
They are not arguing now.
On a return trip to pick up the jeans and end the grief Friday morning, the New York limousine fleet manager won nearly $800,000 playing a slot machine.
He got up at 5 a.m. and drove three hours to Atlantic City, arriving at the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa before the boutique, Whim, opened at 10 a.m.
In his pocket was a photocopy of a picture of the jeans that his girlfriend printed out for him, just to make sure there would be no confusion.
With some time to kill, he sat down at a Brazil Slingo slot machine and started playing, betting $4 a spin for about an hour.
"I was just trying to kill time until the store opened so I could get her those jeans," he said. "Then the machine stopped working. I didn't know why, so I called security. They came over, took a look at it, and said, 'You won the jackpot!"'
He called his girlfriend, whom he identified only as Anna, and she started screaming.
"She wasn't mad anymore," he said with a laugh. "She's waiting for me at home now."
After receiving his payout from the casino, Zabib bought a pair of "7 For All Mankind" jeans — Dojo style — jeans that Anna had wanted so badly.
"They're the hot brand right now," said Borgata spokesman Michael Facenda. "They go for $149 a pair."
Zabib does not know what else he will do with his newfound riches.
"Maybe buy her some more jeans," Zabib said.
Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox