Latest news with #ZingoExpress
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Woman stops for gas, leaves with 6-figure lottery prize: 'It felt so unreal'
A North Carolina woman's stop for gas turned into a windfall of nearly a quarter of a million dollars, lottery officials said. Natalie Vega of Asheboro won the $200,000 top prize after buying a $5 scratch-off Prize Link Multiplier ticket from Zingo Express on North Main Street in Archdale, just southeast of Winston-Salem. 'It felt so unreal,' Vega recalled to North Carolina lottery officials. 'It's just overwhelming.' Vega said that it was her first time buying that particular lottery ticket, telling officials: 'I like to just pick random ones.' This was her biggest lottery win ever. 'I've only ever won a couple dollars,' Vega said, per lottery officials. 'I think $20 is the biggest before this.' After scratching off the ticket, it took Vega some time to fully process the big win. 'I had to read the instructions on the ticket like 10 times, just to make sure I was looking at it right," she said. On May 21, Vega went to lottery headquarters in Raleigh to collect her winnings, which, after required state and federal tax withholdings, totaled $143,501. The Prize Link Multiplier game debuted in April with five $200,000 top prizes. Three $200,000 prizes remain to be claimed, according to lottery officials. Vega said she plans to use her winnings to buy some land and invest. Tickets can be purchased in person at gas stations, convenience stores, and grocery stores. Some airport terminals may also sell lottery tickets. You can also order tickets online through Jackpocket, the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network, in these U.S. states and territories: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Puerto Rico, Washington D.C., and West Virginia. The Jackpocket app allows you to pick your lottery game and numbers, place your order, see your ticket and collect your winnings all using your phone or home computer. Jackpocket is the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network. Gannett may earn revenue for audience referrals to Jackpocket services. GAMBLING PROBLEM? CALL 1-800-GAMBLER, Call 877-8-HOPENY/text HOPENY (467369) (NY). 18+ (19+ in NE, 21+ in AZ). Physically present where Jackpocket operates. Jackpocket is not affiliated with any State Lottery. Eligibility Restrictions apply. Void where prohibited. Terms: This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Woman's gas stop in North Carolina turns into 6-figure lottery win
Miami Herald
22-05-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
Lottery winner kept checking ticket — ‘to make sure I was looking at it right'
A lottery player tried her luck on a new game — and it paid off big time. 'I had to read the instructions on the ticket like 10 times just to make sure I was looking at it right,' Natalie Vega told the North Carolina Education Lottery. It turns out, Vega's $200,000 prize was the real deal. She hit the jackpot while stopping to get gas in Archdale, a roughly 15-mile drive southwest from Greensboro. While at a Zingo Express store, she spent $5 on a ticket for the Prize Link Multiplier scratch-off game, lottery officials wrote in a May 22 news release. 'That was my first time buying that ticket,' the lucky winner said. 'I like to just pick random ones.' Vega had won lottery prizes in the past, but she had never scored more than about $20. It took her a moment to soak in the six-figure win. 'It felt so unreal,' she said. 'It's just overwhelming.' Vega, who lives in Asheboro, kept $143,501 after taxes. Now, she hopes to invest and buy land with the prize money, officials said. It's not the first time a lottery player kept looking at their lucky ticket. Another North Carolina winner had trouble grasping how much he'd won, so he checked his ticket over and over, McClatchy News reported May 21.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Asheboro woman wins $200k with Archdale lottery ticket
ARCHDALE, N.C. (WGHP) — An Asheboro woman won a life-altering cash prize after stopping for gas in another Triad city. Natalie Vega, of Asheboro, stopped for gas and went into the Zingo Express on North Main Street in Archdale and decided to pick up a Prize Link Multiplier ticket. 'That was my first time buying that ticket,' Vega said. 'I like to just pick random ones.' Luck was on Vega's side as that $5 scratch-off ticket won her the $200,000 top prize. 'It felt so unreal,' she recalled. 'It's just overwhelming.' Vega's experienced some lottery luck in the past, but nothing like this. 'I've only ever won a couple dollars,' she laughed. 'I think $20 is the biggest before this.' Vega arrived at lottery headquarters in Raleigh on Wednesday to claim her prize and walked away with $143,501 after taxes. She says she plans to buy some land and invest with her winnings. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
