Surprise after man, 65, forgets he had bought winning $242,000 lottery tickets
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An Oakland County man had a hard time believing he won a $242,256 Fantasy 5 jackpot from the Michigan Lottery.
The lucky player, who chose to remain anonymous, matched the Fantasy 5 numbers in the April 30 drawing to win the big prize: 14-16-25-29-39.
The lucky player bought his winning ticket at the BP gas station, located at 1365 west Maple Road in Clawson.
“When I was cashing out at the gas station, I saw the Fantasy 5 jackpot was over $200,000, so I decided to purchase a few tickets,” said the man.
“I forgot I had purchased the tickets until I saw them in my wallet a few days later.
The Michigan Lottery App (Apple and Google) lets you check the winning numbers from all your favorite games, or to find out if you've won any prizes in the last 90 days.
“When I checked the winning numbers on the Lottery app, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I decided to get on my computer and check the numbers on the Lottery website to make sure there wasn’t a glitch on the app,” he said.
“When I confirmed the numbers a second time and saw that the winning ticket was purchased in Clawson, it finally sunk in that I won. Winning is an excellent feeling!”
The lucky winner picked up his nearly-quarter million-dollar check at the Michigan Lottery headquarters in Lansing.
The 65-year-old player visited the Michigan Lottery headquarters to claim his prize last week.
The Oakland County man plans to start college funds for his grandchildren and then save the remainder for retirement.
ABOUT FANTASY 5: Each Fantasy 5 play is $1. For an additional $1 per play, EZmatch may be added to a Fantasy 5 ticket, giving players a chance to win up to $500 instantly. For an additional $1 per play, Double Play may be added to a Fantasy 5 ticket, giving players a second chance to win up to $110,000 in the nightly Double Play drawing. Fantasy 5 players select five numbers from one to 39. Players who match all five Fantasy 5 numbers drawn win a jackpot that starts at $100,000. Fantasy 5 drawings are held seven days a week at 7:29 p.m.
