pauline mckee thought she hit it big in 2011 when putting a penny in the ` miss kitty ' game at the isle hotel casino in waterloo .
but on friday the iowa supreme court determined mckee , who has thirteen grandchildren , had actually only won $ 1.85 because of how the symbols had aligned in the game .
the unanimous court ruled that the casino did not have to pay mckee because the game 's rules stated that the maximum award was $ 41,797,550.16 .