“Brown Eyed Girl” from Joppatowne matched the first five numbers drawn in the Powerball game’s Double Play drawing to score a $500,000 prize.
A Harford County woman stopped by Lottery headquarters Aug. 27 to claim what is by far the largest prize she, or her dad, ever won. She mentioned her late father because he left behind a legacy of playing Lottery games – and winning. She not only has him to thank for her $500,000 Powerball win, but also the extra $1 she spent to enter the game’s Double Play drawing.
“My father really enjoyed playing the lottery,” the retired administrative assistant told officials. And according to the Joppatowne resident, he did pretty well. “He had so much fun playing that he’d have continued even without the wins.”
“Brown Eyed Girl,” which is her secret Lottery identity, kept the tradition alive after her dad passed. And with this half-million-dollar prize, she’s keeping the family’s winning streak going, too.
Powerball tickets are $2, with drawings held Monday, Wednesday and Saturday nights. Powerball Double Play is a separate drawing held 30 minutes after each Powerball drawing. Players can add the Double Play option to their Powerball tickets for an additional $1, making their $3 ticket eligible for both the Powerball drawing and the Double Play drawing.
It was Bernie’s Liquors at 1414 Martin Boulevard in Middle River that sold the winning ticket, earning for the shop a $1,000 bonus from the Lottery. The $500,000 Double Play winner sold at Bernie’s Liquors matched the five black balls in the Double Play drawing, but did not match the red Powerball number. Tickets that match all six numbers in the Double Play drawing win a top prize of $10 million.
“This is such a blessing, though I still find it difficult to believe it really happened, even now,” the big winner shared. “I cried when I realized that I’d won.”
The game’s top prize has risen to an estimated annuity value of $850 million for the drawing tonight (Aug. 27), with an estimated cash option of $383.7 million.
