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Lottery player was afraid to check MI ticket. When he did, he ‘started screaming'

Lottery player was afraid to check MI ticket. When he did, he ‘started screaming'

Miami Herald09-07-2025
A 50-year-old man bought a store's last few tickets for a Michigan lottery game, then discovered he won a huge top prize.
The Wayne County man, who chose to remain anonymous, won big playing the $4,000,000 Winner game, state lottery officials said in a July 9 news release.
When stopping into a market in Ann Arbor, the lucky player noticed none of the three jackpot prizes, each worth $4 million, had been won — so he bought the store's last three tickets for a shot to win.
At first, he scratched off only the barcodes on the tickets, then scanned them with the lottery app, officials said. One of the tickets triggered a message indicating it was a winner — but how much, the app didn't say.
'One of the tickets came back with a message to file a claim, so I knew I had to have won one of the big prizes, but I was too nervous to scratch the ticket,' he told lottery officials. 'The next day, once I calmed down a bit, I scanned the ticket on the Michigan Lottery app and started screaming when $4 million came up on the screen! It was unreal.'
The man went to lottery headquarters in Lansing and picked up his winnings, officials said, adding that he opted for a $2.7 million lump sum payment instead of the full amount paid out in annual installments.
'With his winnings, he plans to pay off his home, take a trip, and then save the remainder,' officials said.
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Lottery player was afraid to check MI ticket. When he did, he ‘started screaming'
Lottery player was afraid to check MI ticket. When he did, he ‘started screaming'

Miami Herald

time09-07-2025

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Lottery player was afraid to check MI ticket. When he did, he ‘started screaming'

A 50-year-old man bought a store's last few tickets for a Michigan lottery game, then discovered he won a huge top prize. The Wayne County man, who chose to remain anonymous, won big playing the $4,000,000 Winner game, state lottery officials said in a July 9 news release. When stopping into a market in Ann Arbor, the lucky player noticed none of the three jackpot prizes, each worth $4 million, had been won — so he bought the store's last three tickets for a shot to win. At first, he scratched off only the barcodes on the tickets, then scanned them with the lottery app, officials said. One of the tickets triggered a message indicating it was a winner — but how much, the app didn't say. 'One of the tickets came back with a message to file a claim, so I knew I had to have won one of the big prizes, but I was too nervous to scratch the ticket,' he told lottery officials. 'The next day, once I calmed down a bit, I scanned the ticket on the Michigan Lottery app and started screaming when $4 million came up on the screen! It was unreal.' The man went to lottery headquarters in Lansing and picked up his winnings, officials said, adding that he opted for a $2.7 million lump sum payment instead of the full amount paid out in annual installments. 'With his winnings, he plans to pay off his home, take a trip, and then save the remainder,' officials said.

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