Winner in Winters: Small-town liquor store sells winning $1M scratcher to "regular customer"
WINTERS -- A Yolo County community member is believed to be a million dollars richer after buying a winning lottery ticket at Winters Wine and Liquor.
The California Lottery confirms a winning $1 million Scratchers game was sold at the local store but has not yet officially confirmed a winner has claimed the prize as they vet the person who came forward with the lucky ticket.
The store owners tell CBS13 the person who brought the winning ticket back to the store is a local customer who frequents the store on a regular basis.
"Oh yeah, he's happy. He is super happy, going to pay off my house, pay for kids' gifts, everything. He's excited about that for sure," said Mickey Singh, co-owner of the liquor store.
The shop is also winning big, getting a payout of $5,000, which they plan to invest back into their store.
It's putting their small-town business in the spotlight with a new millionaire made.
"You feel like you're on the map now. Not just a lotto-selling store, you're a lucky store," Singh said.
The business is now seeing more foot traffic since the big win was announced over the weekend.
"We've definitely seen an upsurge in ticket sales for sure ever since somebody won," co-owner Johnny Malhi said. "Obviously, it's a win because they come and buy something else too while they're here. Plus it puts us on the map, Winters got some recognition finally."
Also striving to strike gold are other regulars of the shop like Winters native John Hoskins, who plays the lottery every single day.
"It's a habit. Probably a bad habit, but it's something I enjoy," Hoskins said.
It's a game that brings him a smile, if nothing else.
"I kind of think I have a system, but I don't. If I knew, I'd be rich!" Hoskins said with a laugh.
Before Hoskins drove off, he let CBS13 know he had hit a stroke of luck.
"Hey, I did hit!" Hoskins exclaimed from his car. "Out of a $10 bet, I got 75! So I did win off this one."
He's not the only one hoping to scratch their way to striking it rich. Customer Carlos Cano also bought lottery tickets from the store on Tuesday.
"What do you dream about spending the money on?" I asked.
"Paying my mortgage. My bills, credit cards, that's it," Cano said.
Hoskins responded with a mutual modesty for the potential millionaire making.
"Just making sure my family is set up. My kid, not so hard for him to come along," Hoskins said.
Since 1985, the California Lottery says it has funneled more than $147 billion back into California communities and public education.
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