A commuter from Southern Maryland already has his calendar marked for retirement in the first half of 2025, but a $500,000 win on a Maryland Lottery scratch-off will make the transition to regular relaxation extra smooth.
“It couldn’t happen at a better time,” the winner said on Dec. 16 after claiming his prize at Maryland Lottery headquarters.
A regular player who enjoys bingo- and crossword-themed games, the Calvert County resident keeps track of prizes remaining on scratch-offs using information updated daily on the Maryland Lottery website. Thanks to that resource, he knew there was a single top prize of $500,000 unclaimed on the Bonus Bingo X20 game, a $20 instant ticket, so he included it in his selection of scratch-offs.
The main reasons he enjoys the bingo- and crossword-themed scratch-offs is the diversion of the extended-play games and the thrill of not knowing if the instant ticket in hand is a winner.
“It could happen to anyone on any day,” he said.
The winner recalls sitting in his truck, playing the 10 crossword games on the $20 instant ticket, when he realized he had matched the caller’s numbers and won $50,000. Excited, he called his adult son to share news of his good fortune.
The son, also a Lottery enthusiast, realized the game had another component and asked his dad if he had scratched the multiplier at the top of the instant ticket. The winner had not, but when he did, he revealed a 10X multiplier, turning his already juicy $50,000 prize into a sizzling half a million dollars.
The winner is already set up to leave his Washington, D.C. commute behind, and move from the coastal flatlands of Southern Maryland to the Blue Ridge region of Virginia. The extra money, he said, will be a nice addition to his retirement savings.
He bought the $500,000 top-prize winning scratch-off at Ken-Mar Liquors. The store located at 1525 Solomons Island Road South in Prince Frederick will receive a Lottery bonus of $1,000 for selling the top-prize winning scratch-off.
