Player almost missed out on his winning Lucky Times 10 game
A retired tow truck driver, who still works full time as a mechanic, is riding high after scoring a $50,000 scratch-off win in December. The Annapolis player enjoys trying his luck with a variety of the Maryland Lottery’s games and almost missed finding his fortune on the Lucky Times 10 scratch-off.
His road to riches took the 70-year-old to his favorite Lottery retailer, Pinkey’s West Street Liquors at 110 West Street in Annapolis. He asked the clerk if there were any new scratch-offs. The store employee suggested he try the $10 Lucky Times 10 instant ticket, but it was the very first scratch-off in the pack.
“I don’t normally buy the first ticket in a stack,” the winner said. “I feel like the winners are further in the pack, but I bought it anyway and the number two ticket, too.” Good thing he purchased both scratch-offs because the second one carried the $50,000 prize.
After discovering the first instant ticket was a non-winner, the father and grandfather began scratching instant ticket number two. Immediately, he revealed a match with one of the winning numbers for a $10,000 prize.
“That was the first box and I needed to play the rest of the game,” he said. “Each matching number was a $10,000 prize.”
The lucky player scratched his way to a $50,000 win. He let the store clerk confirm his Lottery luck and then he called his wife to share the news. “She thought I was lying and told me to bring the ticket straight home to her,” he said. “I did and she hid it for safekeeping.”
The winner waited until the New Year to claim his prize for tax-filing reasons. He told Lottery officials when he claimed the prize that he plans to put every cent of it into savings.
