A Sunday morning tradition turned into a windfall of winnings for 55-year-old Vallejo man John Wendler and his wife Judy.
“We like to go to breakfast on Sunday mornings, and I gave her a choice,” said the automobile technician. “Did she want to go to breakfast in Berkeley, or to Cache Creek? The salmon BLT sandwich is a treat for us at the casino. Judy chose to go to Cache Creek - thank God she did!”

That’s because Wendler was treated to more than just a great breakfast. He won the first and largest Super Cache Fever Jackpot ever, receiving a check for $225,000.

“I saw the sign for the Super Cache Fever Jackpot when we first walked in,” said Wendler. “I just thought, ’some lucky dog will get it.’ I never figured it would be me!”

The big winner said it was hard to believe he actually won.

“All of a sudden the machine just quit, I thought the doggone thing was broke!” said Wendler. “I just about died when I found out I was the winner. I didn’t know whether to laugh, cry, fall on the floor or what!”

The couple, who have been married for 23 years, say they plan to use their winnings to pay off their mortgage. Judy also plans to travel with her girlfriends on a cruise this April.

And there’s one more tradition they’re going to keep.

“We’ll be at Cache Creek this Sunday morning again,” said Wendler. “We have a tradition that if we do well at the casino, we will treat ourselves to an ice cream. We were so excited about the win that we forgot it - so we have to go back to get our winning ice cream!”

“Cache Creek Casino Resort and the Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians would like to congratulate Mr. Wendler and his wife on their good fortune,” said Mike Leonard, vice president of marketing at Cache Creek. “We hope that this jackpot can do some wonderful things for their family.”

Super Cache Fever Jackpots are promotional payouts available on all slot machines, any denomination, at Cache Creek Casino Resort. The promotion is for a limited time and started March 23. The Super Cache Fever Jackpots start at $100,000 and are guaranteed to hit by $300,000.

Cache Creek is Northern California’s only casino resort. It operates 3,100 slot machines and 142 table games throughout its 100,000-square-foot facility.