Bartender gets incredible $17,500 tip in the form of winning lotteryticket from generous patron

An Oregon bartender just got the tip of a lifetime.

One of Aurora Kephart's regulars at Conway's Restaurant and Lounge in Springfield often tips her with Keno tickets from the Oregon Lottery.

Tuesday evening, the man who wishes to remain anonymous bought several tickets and offered Miss Kephart, 25, to select two of them.


When she checked the numbers, Kephart's first ticket won $5. The second turned into a $17,500 gratuity that shocked everyone in the lounge.

‘The look on his face was incredible,’ Kephart told The Register-Guard. ‘I automatically handed it back to him; it was his ticket.’

But the generous patron refused to accept the lucky ticket and made Kephart sign the back so she would be the only one able to cash the prize.

Kephart’s benefactor then celebrated her good fortune by buying everyone at the bar a round of drinks.

With the bar packed with excited customers, most of them regulars, Kephart went right back to work, struggling to stay focused.

The next day, she claimed her prize at the Oregon Lottery office in Salem – and came to work for an evening shift.

George Conway, the owner of the bar, told the station KEZI that Kephart, who has worked for him for four years, is well-deserving of such a gratuity.

Miss Kephart said she forced the open-handed patron to accept a percentage of her winnings.

Before she came in to work Tuesday, Kephart had been looking to buy a new couch, but changed her mind after seeing the high prices. Now, she plans to go back to the furniture store with her windfall in hand.

‘Instead of waiting till Christmas or later, now I can buy something I really need,’ she said.

The 25-year-old mixologist added that she intends to save the rest of the prize money.