Unhoused man wins $1m jackpot from California lottery scratcher
The winner, who has not been publicly identified, purchased the scratcher ticket from Sandy's Deli-Liquor in San Luis Obispo where he has been a customer for years, according to media reports.
'He came to the store, he scratched it and is like: 'Oh my god, is that real?' the store manager, Wilson Samaan, told KSBY. 'He's like: 'Man, I'm not homeless anymore!' I'm like: 'Man, you hit the jackpot.''
The man initially thought he had won $100,000 before Samaan confirmed he had in fact won $1m. Samaan later drove the man, who doesn't have a car, to Fresno so that he could turn in the ticket in person rather than mailing it. 'I told him: 'That's a million-dollar ticket … I will drive you,'' he said.
The winner told the outlet that the prize was 'life-changing' and that he planned to use it for a down payment on a home in the area and for a car.
In a video posted by a local business owner, the man confirmed his win, saying: 'I won $1M here in SLO at Sandy's liquor store and yes, I just can't wait to get off the streets.'
He won the prize with a Triple Red 777 scratcher. The odds of winning a prize of $1m with the ticket are one in 2,047,423, according to the California Lottery.
Sign up to Headlines US
Get the most important US headlines and highlights emailed direct to you every morning
after newsletter promotion
Lottery officials cannot share information about a claim until it is verified, at which point the winner's name and other prize details become public, according to a statement from the California Lottery. The California Lottery said it processes 10,000 claims a month, and more than 100 a year are $1m or larger.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
13-08-2025
- Reuters
India's United Spirits misses quarterly profit estimates on higher spends
Aug 8 (Reuters) - United Spirits ( opens new tab reported quarterly profit below analysts' estimates on Wednesday, as higher marketing spends overshadowed affluent Indians' sustained demand for premium liquor. The Indian arm of spirits maker Diageo (DGE.L), opens new tab reported a profit of 2.58 billion rupees ($29.50 million) for the quarter ended June 30, a fall of 14% from a year ago. Analysts, on average, had predicted 3.03 billion rupees, according to data compiled by LSEG. However, net sales value in United Spirits' premium segment, which includes Johnnie Walker whiskey and Tanqueray gin, rose 9% year-on-year, driving an 8.4% rise in overall sales value. For more earnings highlights, (click here). Affluent Indians, unperturbed by higher living costs, are splurging on everything from high-priced liquor to watches and jewellery. 'Premiumization' has lifted the profits of companies ranging from spirits sellers such as Radico Khaitan ( opens new tab to department store chain Shoppers Stop ( opens new tab. Still, United Spirits' marketing spends grew 36%, while overall costs rose about 9%. Its quarterly earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBIDA) fell to 4.15 billion rupees from 4.58 billion rupees a year ago. Gross profit margin fell to 44% from 44.5% a year ago. PEER COMPARISON * The mean of analyst ratings standardised to a scale of Strong Buy, Buy, Hold, Sell, and Strong Sell ** The ratio of the stock's last close to analysts' mean price target; a ratio above 1 means the stock is trading above the PT APRIL TO JUNE STOCK PERFORMANCE -- All data from LSEG -- $1 = 87.4660 Indian rupees
Reuters
12-08-2025
- Reuters
Magic Moments maker ties up with Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan to launch premium tequila
Aug 12 (Reuters) - Radico Khaitan ( opens new tab, the maker of "Magic Moments" vodka, will invest up to $4.56 million and team up with Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan and Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath to launch a premium tequila brand, marking its foray into the category. The Indian liquor maker, known for premium offerings such as Rampur Indian Single Malt and Jaisalmer Indian Craft Gin, will roll out the brand D'YAVOL Añejo — a premium spirit made from agave and aged about two years in wine casks. D'YAVOL, a luxury brand founded in 2022 by Shah Rukh Khan's son Aryan Khan, along with Leti Blagoeva and Bunty Singh, is headquartered in Amsterdam and offers vodka, blended malt Scotch whisky and premium streetwear. D'YAVOL Añejo is set to launch by December and depending on state excise duty, will be priced between 20,000 rupees ($228.21) and 30,000 rupees, Radico Khaitan Managing Director Abhishek Khaitan told Reuters on Tuesday. The launch comes as affluent Indians increasingly splurge on everything from luxury dining to premium alcohol, housing and cars. Alcohol sales in the country, according to data from analytics firm Crisil, are projected, opens new tab to grow as much as 10% to $61.35 billion in fiscal 2026. Tequila is one of the fastest growing segments globally and India is catching on very fast. The market size in the country is about 300,000 cases, out of which 15% is the Añejo (Spanish word meaning 'aged') category, Khaitan said. "We believe that in the next five years, tequila can reach a volume of about a million cases in India plus global market, so I think it was a great opportunity," he said. Under the partnership, Radico Khaitan and Shah Rukh Khan's family will each hold a 47.5% stake in the venture, while Kamath will own 5%. The deal also underscores the fierce competition in mass and premium liquor segments. Just three weeks ago, peer Tilaknagar Industries ( opens new tab bought the "Imperial Blue" whisky brand from Pernod Ricard ( opens new tab for $486 million. ($1 = 87.6370 Indian rupees)
The Independent
01-08-2025
- The Independent
China's fiery baijiu spirit evolves to attract younger drinkers
The centuries-old fiery Chinese spirit baijiu, long associated with business dinners, is being reshaped to appeal to younger generations as its makers adapt to changing times. Mostly distilled from sorghum, the clear but pungent liquor contains as much as 60% alcohol. It's the usual choice for toasts of 'gan bei,' the Chinese expression for bottoms up, and raucous drinking games. 'If you like to drink spirits and you've never had baijiu, it's kind of like eating noodles but you've never had spaghetti,' said Jim Boyce, a Canadian writer and wine expert who founded World Baijiu Day a decade ago. The annual event aims to promote the traditional liquor, which is far less known internationally than whiskey or vodka. Moutai, a kind of baijiu made in mountainous Guizhou province in southwestern China, is known as the country's 'national liquor.' Perhaps its biggest endorsement came in 1974, when U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger banqueted with Deng Xiaoping, who would later become China's top leader. 'I think if we drink enough Moutai, we can solve anything," Kissinger said. 'Then, when I return to China, we must take steps to increase our production of it,' Deng replied, according to an archived document from the U.S. State Department's Office of the Historian. Price fluctuations of Feitian Moutai, the liquor's most famous brand, serve as a barometer for China's baijiu market. This year, its price has dropped by 36% after four consecutive years of decline, according a report by the China Alcoholic Drinks Association. The report forecast China's baijiu production will likely fall for the eighth straight year in 2025. Baijiu consumption has dropped as people spend more cautiously, cutting back on banquets and drinking due to a weaker economy. Perennial anti-corruption campaigns by the ruling Communist Party targeting lavish official dinners have taken a harsh toll. In May, the party issued new rules banning cigarettes and alcohol during work meals. China's drinking culture is evolving, with younger people keen to protect their health and less inclined to overindulge or be bound by rigid social conventions. Faced with far more choices, they might instead opt for whiskey, wine or non-alcoholic alternatives. 'There is an old saying in China: 'No banquet is complete without alcohol.' It means in the past, without alcohol there is no social lubricant,' 30-year-old Chi Bo said while having cocktails with friends in Beijing's chic Sanlitun area. 'People no longer want to drink alcohol or tend to drink less but they can still sit together and even discuss serious affairs,' Chi said. 'Most of the people don't want to drink alcohol unless they have to.' Baijiu makers are responding with creative innovations like baijiu-flavored ice cream. Kweichou Moutai partnered with China's Luckin' Coffee last year to introduce a Moutai-flavored latte that reportedly sells 5 million cups a day across China. Bartenders also are designing cocktails using a baijiu base. 'There are so many choices right now,' Boyce said. 'It's just about fighting for attention in terms of choice.' Jiangxiaobai, a newer brand made in southwestern China's Chongqing, has targeted young consumers from the beginning. It offers fruit-infused baijiu with an alcohol content below 10%, packaged in smaller, more affordable bottles adorned with philosophical or sentimental phrases meant to resonate with Chinese youth such as, 'Unspoken words. In my eyes, in drafts, in dreams, or downed in a drink.' 'Our promotion of products combines the culture and lifestyle young people advocate," Jiangxiaobai marketing director Fan Li said. "From our products to our branding, it's a process of embracing the younger generation." Shirley Huang, out with friends on a Friday night in Sanlitun, said she had never touched baijiu at age 27, preferring cocktails. But that night, something new on the menu caught her attention: a baijiu-based cocktail. 'Baijiu is quietly making its way into our lives. We just haven't noticed,' she said 'It may not appear as itself, but it reemerges in new forms.' ___
