Game over: Mahjong player in Southern China drops dead after winning lucky hand

A 59-year-old man in Southern China became so over-excited by a lucky hand during a mahjong game that he keeled over and died, local media reported.

The victim, surnamed Zhong, suffered an unspecified medical condition and was on a drip at the time of the incident in Huizhou, Guangdong province, the Guangzhou Daily reported.

Zhong had rented a chess room in the city’s Huicheng district for the past two years where he played mahjong with the others, the landlady was quoted as saying. Zhong was paid a commission for organising the setup.

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According to the report, Zhong played mahjong virtually non-stop for the entire Lunar New Year holiday.

His mahjong partners called the police when Zhong slumped in his chair after a period of excitement. He was announced dead at the scene.

Police are investigating the cause of death and have contacted his relatives.