A man won a $1M lottery prize. His luck didn’t stop there
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An ordinary stop at a convenience store turned into an unforgettable day for an Ohio man after one scratch-off ticket delivered a life-changing jackpot. One more purchase made the day even more memorable.
The Toledo resident won the top prize on a $50 Ohio Lottery Millionaire Blowout scratch-off ticket, then decided to try his luck again by purchasing a second ticket, according to the Ohio Lottery.
That extra gamble paid off. The second scratch-off was also a winner, boosting his total haul to more than $1 million in prizes before taxes.
His first ticket landed the game’s top prize of $40,000 a year for 25 years, valued at $1 million. Rather than taking the annual payments, he chose the lump-sum cash option of $500,000, leaving him with $366,250 after mandatory state and federal tax withholdings totaling 26.75%.
Back-to-back winning tickets
The winning tickets were purchased at Mike’s Corner Store on Key Street in Toledo.
The Ohio Lottery said the winner, who was not publicly identified, plans to use the money to extend an upcoming vacation, buy a new vehicle, spend some on his children and put the rest in the bank.
Store employees said they were thrilled to learn someone had struck it big, especially after discovering the customer had won twice in a row.
“We found out that somebody hit the big prize,” employee Stephanie Krampton told WTOL. “I didn’t know it was right in a row at first.”
Krampton said the store has many loyal lottery players and believes the winner may be one of its regular customers.
“It’s amazing. It’s a life-changing win, and I couldn’t be happier,” she told the station. “It’s a win for everybody. It’s a win for the community too because now, look, it does happen here. It does happen in Toledo.”
How the Millionaire Blowout game works
The Ohio Lottery’s Millionaire Blowout is a $50 scratch-off game offering prizes ranging from $75 to $1 million, with overall odds of winning listed at 1 in 2.73. As of late July, the lottery said 56 top prizes and 48 $25,000 prizes remained available.
Reporter Anthony Thompson can be reached at ajthompson@usatodayco.com, or on X @athompsonUSAT
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