An Illinois Lottery player didn’t know they had scored a $1 million prize until hearing a rumor at work that a big ticket had been sold locally. Photo courtesy of the Illinois Lottery
An Illinois Lottery player heard a rumor at work that someone had scored a $1 million prize — and it turned out to be them.
The winner told Illinois Lottery officials they decided to buy tickets for the July 10 Lotto drawing after hearing about a big jackpot.
“I play the lottery once in a while when I have extra cash,” the player said. “I hadn’t played in a while, but the jackpot was nearly $12 million, so after filling up my gas tank, I decided to buy $10 worth of Lotto tickets with the Extra Shot add-on.”
The player bought their tickets from the Citgo gas station on West 79th Street in Justice, but didn’t check the winning numbers until later.
“I found out the next day at work that someone in Justice had won,” they said. “That’s where I bought my ticket, so I scanned mine with the app. At first, I thought I had won $1,000. Then I scanned it again, and a few more zeroes popped up. I had to do a double take and scanned it about 20 more times before it finally sank in. I was freaking out.”
The winner said they are carefully considering what to do with their $1 million prize.
“My friends are in the financial industry, so I’m hoping they’ll help me invest wisely. But one thing’s for sure — I’ll be using some of it for my wedding and honeymoon next year,” he said.
