Nice story,I didn't know this one.There are very few persons on earth compared to the earth population which in percentage is less than 0.0000001% that have experienced a life changing event by going to a casino.These people are the ones who have hit a multi million dollar jackpot,only this can be considered a true life changing event.I have seen people winning small jackpots from 50.000 dollars up to 250.000 dollars but most of the time they have lost it again,while winning a multi million dollar jackpot can at least change your life for a minimum of 5-10 years even if you gamble that money away.
I beg to disagree with your opinion that only a very few percent of gamblers have experience life changing success. If you think that winning multi million dollars is the only way for you to experience life changing success then you're wrong. It actually depends on the individual and how he will manage his funds and winnings on the casino. Just as you've said, you already saw a lot of people who won more than 50,000 dollars. More than 50,000 dollars may change an individuals life depending on how he managed his winnings as not all of them lose these.
Based from the story above, 27,000 dollars is more than enough to change his life situation as he invested his money on his own company.