A Hyattsville man’s decision to follow advice from a fellow customer at a convenience store turned into a $100,000 Maryland Lottery prize.
The player regularly purchases bingo-style scratch-offs, but decided to try something different during a late February visit to the 7-Eleven at 13880 Old Columbia Pike in Silver Spring. He was checking out when another customer suggested he try his luck on the new $25 scratch-off, $1,000,000 Crossword.
The construction worker heeded the advice and bought the ticket before heading to work. A few hours later, he scratched the ticket during a break and realized he had a big winner. It wasn’t the game’s $1 million top prize, but rather a $100,000 win at the second tier.
In disbelief, he scanned the ticket using the Maryland Lottery app to confirm, then immediately called his wife, who was able to confirm the exciting news.
He had sent her a screenshot of the winning message from the app.
“He couldn’t believe it,” said his wife, who accompanied him to Lottery headquarters in Baltimore on March 10 to claim the prize.
Despite the surprise win, the player finished his workday and later coached his rec league soccer team, as planned.
The couple said they intend to use the winnings to pay off their vehicles and place the remaining money in savings.
The $1,000,000 Crossword scratch-off launched in February as the Maryland Lottery’s first $25 scratch-off game. The game features four $1 million top prizes, three of which remain unclaimed. Nine $100,000 second-tier prizes also remain in circulation.
