Vacation, celebration dinner in the works
She throws in with co-workers to buy Mega Millions and Powerball tickets, but a Columbia woman’s big win of $50,000 occurred thanks to her family’s monthly purchase of scratch-offs.
“We like to go have some fun,” the winner said of her family’s scratch-off tradition. Over the years, they’ve hit for a few prizes in the two- and three-digit range. That changed with the purchase of a Gold X50 instant ticket, which delivered a $50,000 second-tier prize.
The Howard County resident ended up checking the scratch-off at a Lottery retailer to confirm the prize. The scanner did so, but she had to scan the $10 instant ticket again to make sure.
“Is it real?” she remembers asking herself.
Most of the money will end up in savings, the winner said, but some will go toward a weekend family excursion to the beach or to New York City and for a family dinner celebration. The 47-year-old added that her family’s Labrador Retriever will get some extra treats, too.
The lucky scratch-off came from Town Center Exxon at 10141 Little Patuxent Parkway in Columbia.
The Gold X50 game debuted in January with 10 top prizes and is a member of a Gold Multiplier family of games and the Gold Multiplier second-chance promotion. Upcoming entry deadlines for the chance to win $50,000 are April 24, May 22 and June 19. This win is the seventh second-tier prize claimed; three $100,000 top prizes remain and another 3 $50,000 second-tier prizes. Other members of the scratch-off family are the $1 Gold X5, $2 Gold X10 and $5 Gold X20 games.
