Missouri – With a huge smile and excited laughter, Nicole Argent claimed a $1 million Powerball prize from the drawing on Oct. 20. She purchased the winning ticket at U-Gas, 10743 Watson Road, in St. Louis.
“I went in for Mega Millions tickets, but it was 9:02 p.m. and I couldn’t buy them,” said the St. Charles resident, who missed the 8:59 p.m. cut-off time for the Mega Millions drawing on Oct. 19. “So I said, ‘Just give me two of the Powerball tickets for tomorrow’s drawing.’ And that was the winner!”
When Argent checked her Powerball tickets, she initially thought one of them only matched four white-ball numbers with a payout of $100. Happy about the extra change she thought she had won from the ticket, she went to a local QuikTrip to cash it in.
“They looked at me and said, ‘No. You didn’t win $100.’ Then turned the screen around to show me I had won $1 million,” recalled Argent. “I didn’t believe it.”
She later claimed her $1 million prize at Lottery Headquarters in Jefferson City and relived the excitement when, again, the ticket scanned to show a $1 million win.
“I still can’t believe it,” she exclaimed.
The Powerball winning numbers for Oct. 20 were: 16, 54, 57, 62, 69 and the Powerball was 23.