North Carolina Man Wins $1 Million On Lottery Numbers His Children Chose

“I started hyperventilating.”

A North Carolina man said he started “hyperventilating” when he realized he won a $1 million Mega Millions lottery prize last week.

David Morris of Pineville asked his children to choose his lottery numbers, which proved to be a very lucrative decision, according to a release from the North Carolina Education Lottery.

Morris said he doesn’t usually play Mega Millions but when the estimated jackpot had reached $1.35 billion—the second largest in the game’s history—he decided to go for it.

He didn’t realize he’d won until he heard that a winning $1 million ticket was sold in Pineville and still hadn’t been claimed. He checked his ticket and realized the numbers—chosen by his son—had matched all five white balls.

He immediately made a phone call.

“I called my wife at work and told her to come home right away,” Morris laughed.

After federal and state tax withholdings, Morris took home $712,501 and he’s already decided how he plans to spend it.

“We want to buy some land up in the Smoky Mountains where my wife is from,” Morris told the North Carolina Education Lottery.

Last year the North Carolina Lottery raised more than $929 million for education in the state—that’s more than $2.5 million a day on average in the state.

“It’s great to see a $1 million Mega Millions winner like David here in North Carolina,” Mark Michalko, executive director of the North Carolina Education Lottery said.

Mikchalko’s hope that the next Mega Millions billionaire would also come from North Carolina were dashed, however, when it was revealed the winning record-breaking ticket was sold in Florida.

Tuesday night’s Mega Millions jackpot was the largest in history at $1.58 billion. The winner could claim a $783 million payout. 

For more Southern Living news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on Southern Living.