Lottery player wins two $1 million prizes months apart in Florida. Here's where
Luck struck twice for a Florida lottery player after a stop at a gas station.
Gail Riola, 67, won $1 million on a 500X THE CASH scratch-off game, four months after winning $1 million on the same game, the Florida Lottery confirmed to McClatchy News.
Riola, a North Port resident, bought the winning ticket at a Circle K in Port Charlotte, officials said in an April 29 news release. She beat odds of 1 in 274,004 to snag the second-tier prize — and it's not the first time.
She tested her luck in November and scored the same seven-figure prize after purchasing the $50 ticket at a RaceTrac in North Port, McClatchy News reported, citing lottery officials.
Riola chose a lump sum payment, taking home $640,000 after taxes.
She went the same route on April 29 when she claimed her latest winnings at the lottery's district office in Orlando, according to the release. The Circle K was paid a $2,000 commission for selling the winning ticket.
A top prize worth $25 million is still up for grabs in the 500X THE CASH scratch-off game, the lottery's website says. Officials say the prize is the Florida Lottery's largest ever jackpot on a scratch-off game.
Riola did not say how she plans to spend her winnings.
Port Charlotte is about a 45-mile drive northwest from downtown Fort Myers.
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