The Modern Man who Broke the Monte Carlo Bank

A British judge has compared a man fighting to keep his £650,000 online gambling jackpot winnings to the character from the classic 1930s Hollywood romantic comedy film, "The Man who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo."

Gambler fights for winnings

Bruno Venturi put a £17 pounds stake on one of Eurobet.com's lottery-style games in 2009, and over a 3 and a half hour session he kept winning - until he claimed a jackpot to the tune of £650,000 ($1m.). However, the company which operated the gambling website said a software bug was responsible for the man's luck.

Surrey, England-based Eurobet UK Ltd told the High Court in London this week that the man's winning are null and void because he was mistakenly charged for only one in six of his total bets. The company has refused to pay the Naples, Italy resident his winnings, leading Judge Simon Brown QC to make his reference to the 1935 film.

"I had a good feeling"

Venturi told the court through an interpreter that when he started to win, he developed a good feeling. He said as a player, his instincts told him to keep betting. When challenged by the Eurobet's legal representative, who said he must have realised something was wrong, Venturi said he did not have a clue, and just thought that he was very lucky.

The Italian stopped playing just before midnight, telling the court that he realised the amount he had won and decided that he had to stop. He said he had never been that lucky, and that a human he was taken by the emotions and euphoria. Hopefully for the 41-year-old, his luck continues in this court battle.