Lucky man wins $2.4million on lottery scratchcard he bought for mere peanuts

17 October 2023 , 14:30

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Gary won the top prize in Florida Lottery's ''$150,000 a year for life'' game (Image: Florida Lottery)

Winning over $2.4million from a $5 scratchcard - one man became a millionaire overnight.

The lucky man Gary Thomas, 49, from the city of Dothan, Alabama State, was shocked to realise he had become a millionaire when he won the top prize in Florida Lottery's ''$150,000 a year for life'' game. 

The lucky winner said he was all smiles when he saw the oversized check and said: "It's still sinking in. I couldn't believe it! I still can't believe it!"

Thomas bought the winning ticket at the Lotto Discount Liquor in the town of Campbellton, Florida State. At lottery headquarters in the city of Tallahassee, Thomas chose to receive his winnings as a one-time, lump-sum payment and went home with the entire $2.44 million instead of receiving an annual payment of $150,000.

A lucky Alabama man has won big in the Florida Lottery (Florida Lottery)

Florida Lottery said: "The retailer will receive a $4,000 (£3,300) bonus commission for selling the winning scratch-off ticket. The $5 (£4) Scratch-Off game, '$150,000 A YEAR FOR LIFE' will create a lifetime of memories with more than 9.5 million winning tickets and $132.6 million (£108.8million) in cash prizes including four top prizes of $150,000 (£123,000) a year for life!

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"The overall odds are 1-in-3.95. Scratch-off games are an important part of the Lottery's portfolio of games, comprising approximately 72 percent of ticket sales in fiscal year 2022-2023. Since inception, Scratch-Off games have generated more than $18.09 billion (£14.85billion) for the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund (EETF)."

While Gary won the lottery at a Liquor establishment near the Alabama border, other Floridians have found their luck at Publix, which is a supermarket chain. The company has reportedly been loath to speak about selling the winning tickets. Powerball and Mega Millions jackpots have reached $1billion (£819million) or more only eight times in US history.

In August, a lucky winner claimed the Mega Millions jackpot, which reached $1.58 billion (£1.29million). As of September 25, the winner has still not revealed themselves, according to Florida Today. The $2,440,000 that Gary won, translated to British currency would be at around £1,999,98.

The supermarket earned a hefty $100,000 (£81,900) bonus commission for selling the golden ticket. The prize was so large because numerous drawings had rolled over from April, which led to the largest sum of prize money in the game's history. A lottery spokeswoman said the rollovers from April garnered more than $70 million (£57million) in funds for education in Florida.

Emilia Randall