Howard County man reports that winning ‘big or small’ feels great
An excursion north along I-95 resulted in a fortuitous stop for a Maryland Lottery player from Elkridge. He won $50,000 on a scratch-off he bought at the Sunoco station at the Maryland House Travel Center near Aberdeen.
Telling the story of his win through a friend, who translated for him, the winner said he waited until he got back into his car before scratching off the $20 Gold Rush 777 instant ticket.
“I said, ‘Wait a minute. Wait a minute,’” he recalled this week while claiming his prize at Lottery headquarters in Baltimore. The Howard County resident took a close look and confirmed he won the game’s $50,000 second-tier prize.
He plans to buy a new car with his fortune and continue playing Lottery games. Asked what he likes about playing, he said, “It feels great when you win. Small or big, it still feels great.”
The Gold Rush 777 instant ticket has a top prize of $1 million, of which two of the original four top prizes remain unclaimed. The game went on sale in May 2024 with six prizes at the $50,000 level and three of those are available. In addition, there are 49 of the original 91 prizes at the $10,000 level awaiting discovery.
The Sunoco is one of two Maryland Lottery retailers at the Maryland House rest stop. The other location to buy Lottery games is in the main rest stop building.
