Claims 50 Years! anniversary scratch-off game’s $100,000 prize
An Anne Arundel County man, sent on an errand by his wife, made an extra stop and happened upon the biggest Lottery win of his life. The retired U.S. Army veteran has bought instant tickets every week for years, always hoping for but not really expecting anything like the $100,000 late Christmas gift he received on Tuesday.
“I was heading home when I saw a gas station that I knew sold tickets,” the Severn resident told Lottery officials.
“We’d been pretty busy in the lead up to Christmas so I hadn’t bought a ticket in maybe a week.” Happily for him, Telegraph Exxon carried the game he was meant to find, 50 Years!. “Something about the ticket caught my eye, so I decided to splurge.”
The $50 ticket launched in February to commemorate the Maryland Lottery’s 50th anniversary. The game began with three $5 million top prizes, two of which are still unclaimed, as well as nine $100,000 second-tier prizes. On Christmas Day, three of those $100,000 winners were still in circulation. Now there are two.
“When I uncovered a symbol I immediately looked up what it meant, that’s when I got nervous.” The symbol on the Anne Arundel County man’s ticket awarded him all 45 of the prizes listed, which added up to $100,000. “I rushed home to share the news with my wife. She read the ticket over five times, but still just wouldn’t believe it. We were both in shock.”
Our winners – who chose “Fun Couple” as their secret identity – recommend their lucky gas station, which can be found at 805 Reece Road in Severn, if you are in the area.