By WMBD TV
PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) — A Kewanee man will have a pretty good birthday this year after winning $1 million by scratching off the right things on an Illinois Lottery ticket.
“This win came just in time,” the man who asked to be recognized only as Steve said to Illinois Lottery officials. “I’ll tell you what—this is the best birthday gift I’ve ever gotten.”
He was playing the $5 Onyx Instant Ticket, which he had purchased at Beck’s North, located at 401 E. 2nd St. in Kewanee. For selling that ticket, the station will now get a $10,000 or 1% of the top prize, according to the Illinois Lottery.
The big bucks, Lottery officials said, came after he missed out on another big prize.
“A few weeks ago, I was debating between two $5 tickets,” he told Lottery officials. “I picked one that didn’t win, but my coworker bought one of the other ones and won $10,000.”
When Steve returned to the same store recently, he shared the story with one of the workers.
“He asked me, ‘Will this one be the winner?’ I took that as a sign when I bought this $5 ticket— and that decision made me a millionaire,” he told Lottery officials.
After revealing the winning prize, Steve downloaded the Illinois Lottery app and scanned the ticket to confirm the $1 million win. As for what’s next, Steve plans to invest in several home improvement projects, including building a new garage.
He also has his sights set on buying another car.
“But most importantly,” he said to Lottery officials. “I’m looking forward to spending more time in Arizona during the winter. My son lives there, so it’ll be great to visit him more often.”
Already this year, nearly 33 million winning Instant Tickets have been sold, with players statewide claiming more than $897 million in prizes, according to Lottery officials
The Illinois Lottery currently offers a range of Instant Tickets priced from $1 to $50, available at approximately 7,000 retail locations across Illinois.
WMBD TV first reported this story. You can read the original story online at CIProud.com.
