The New Carrollton man went for a $50,000 Cash ticket at the Landover Hills Exxon at 6579 Annapolis Road in Prince George’s County.
The ticket provides 30 chances to win if a player matches one of five numbers at the top of the ticket.
After scratching off the first 29 without a match, he got to the 30th number and found a $50,000 amount under a No. 7, which was one of the ticket’s five winning numbers, at the lower right corner of the ticket.
“I got to the very bottom and saw that I won,” he told lottery officials. “I am wearing glasses and was not sure if I was seeing things.”
He and his wife of five years then took the ticket to a lottery retailer for official verification.
“I couldn’t believe it. We were hoping to win $500 or even $100. I didn’t plan on winning $50,000,” the man said.
The teacher and his wife plan to use their winnings to pay bills and buy a new car.
The $50,000 Cash ticket launched in December 2022 with 160 $50,000 top prizes, and 79 of those remain unclaimed.
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