Maryland – A loyal Maryland Lottery player enjoyed a welcome surprise when he took his Powerball and Mega Millions tickets into a Royal Farms in Baltimore during a recent stop to buy gas.
The city resident scanned both tickets at the Baltimore County retailer to see if he had a winner. His Mega Millions ticket was not so lucky, said the father of two, but then he scanned the *Powerball *ticket from the June 19 drawing. Instead of telling him how much he won, the ticket-checker message directed him to see the Lottery.
“Usually, it tells you the amount of money you won,” said the happy man, who dubbed himself “Powerball King” for his Lottery win. “I said, ‘I think I won something big.’ ”
He quietly went outside to his car and pulled up the winning numbers from the drawing on his phone. Astonished to see he won $50,000, the 40-year-old celebrated briefly in the driver’s seat before calling his wife with news of their good fortune.
“I said, ‘Stop playing,’” recalls the then-dubious spouse. She and their children joined “Powerball King” on his trip to Lottery headquarters to claim his big prize. A sales manager for a transportation company, “Powerball King” said he will use the $50,000 windfall to help pay for an already scheduled family vacation and to help ease a relative’s financial situation.
The lucky $2 quick-pick ticket he bought at Royal Farms #112 at 3505 Washington Boulevard, coincidently, contained the same four numbers that gave “Powerball King” a $10,000 Mega Millions prize several years ago. He and his wife both play jackpot games and Maryland Lottery scratch-offs and are hoping for a speedy return to Lottery headquarters to claim another big prize!