His retirement hobby of playing scratch-offs just boosted the bank account of Waldorf’s Elijah Stubbs Jr. by $50,000.
Elijah Stubbs Jr. of Charles County is enjoying the life of a retiree, which got even better after his lucky nickel revealed a $50,000 prize on a Gold X50 scratch-off.
The Waldorf man purchases scratch-offs a few times a week at different retailers. On the day Lottery luck paid him a call, Elijah had stopped at the Waldorf 7-Eleven #32282 on 11575 Berry Road to buy the $10 game. “Since I am retired, I like to play scratch-offs for fun,” he said.
The U.S. Navy veteran followed his scratch-off ritual, using a nickel he keeps in his vehicle to scratch off games. “I will use a nickel for as long as I can keep it. They usually last about two months before I lose them and have to get a new one,” he said with a smile.
This time, the outcome was very different. The 62-year-old scratched off the first line on the Gold X50 instant ticket and saw he won at least $50. He scratched below the next few lines and was amazed. “I looked at it and I won $50,000. I was like, ‘Really!’” the lucky winner told Lottery officials.
He has not decided on how he is going to spend the money, but he did mention that his wife has an upcoming birthday.
Elijah retired from the U.S. Navy in 1996 and retired again, three years ago, from the United States Pentagon Police. He said he is using his retirement to enjoy life and get caught up on projects around the house. “I am doing everything I couldn’t do when I was working,” he explained.
The Gold X50 scratch-off went on sale on Jan. 23 and is No. 3 on the Lottery’s Top 40 Scratch-off List. A member of a Gold Multiplier family of games, the scratch-off is also part of the Gold Multiplier second-chance promotion. Other members of the scratch-off family are the $1 Gold X5, $2 Gold X10 and $5 Gold X20 games.
Elijah is the Gold X50 game’s fifth $50,000 winner. Players can search for five unclaimed $100,000 top prizes, five more $50,000 prizes and 19 $10,000 prizes along with smaller prizes ranging from $10 to $500.
