Second chance: Losing lottery ticket turns into $100K win for Ionia Co. man
IONIA, Mich. (WOOD) — A man in Ionia County won $100,000 from a second chance lottery game.
The 51-year-old had lost when he bought 500X Money Maker tickets. He scanned the losing tickets in the Michigan Lottery app for the second chance game, and won in an April 4 drawing, the Michigan Lottery said in a Monday release.
“I’ve been scanning my non-winning tickets to earn entries into the second chance drawing,” the player, who is remaining anonymous, said in the release. “When I checked my email, I saw one from the Michigan Lottery from a few days prior saying I won $100,000.”
He said he called the lottery right away, but had to wait through the weekend to confirm he had won.
“I bet I called 10 times during the weekend hoping I might get lucky and someone would be working overtime and answer the phone,” he said.
He said he plans on using the money to buy tools and pay bills, and will save the rest.
The odds of winning the lottery are slim, with a 1 in 302.6 million chance of winning the Mega Millions jackpot and a 1 in 292.2 million chance of winning the Powerball. The Michigan Lottery advises that “knowing your limits is always the best bet.” If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call the 24/7 Michigan Problem Gambling Helpline at 800.270.7117 or text 248.648.3363. For more information, go to michiganlottery.com.
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