Claims $50,000 top-prize on Home Run Riches game
After a long day of work at her first, and then her second job, a Deale woman enjoys playing a Maryland Lottery scratch-off to relax.
The state employee buys one instant ticket almost every day. She was experiencing a run of good luck when she bought a $5 Home Run Riches scratch-off that delivered an out-of-the park, bases-loaded home run hit. She was caught completely by surprise when she uncovered the game’s $50,000 top prize over the weekend.
“I’ve won $500 three times in the last month,” said the 43-year-old. “There’s no way I could expect more than that, right? I mean, three wins like that in a few weeks is about the best you can do.”
Not true, according to Lady Luck. She was waiting on that Friday night when our winner stopped at Captain Kidd’s Beer, Wine & Spirits in Deale to buy a scratch-off.
“I picked out Home Run Riches because, even though it’s a $5 game, its smallest prize is $10,” she said. “I like that.” Scratching her instant ticket off that night, she was pleased to see a match. The lucky lady then revealed the corresponding prize.
“First there was a 5, so I knew it had to be $50. Then, a second zero made it $500.” The happy player was so amazed that her $500 winning streak had continued that she started to get up to show the scratch-off to her mom. That’s when she realized some of the prize amount was still hidden. The space hid two more zeroes.
“I was just amazed,” she said. “I just sat there for a minute or two staring at the ticket. Then, I started to run around the room.” The Anne Arundel County woman asked her mom to confirm that she saw the same thing – a match worth $50,000. Mom confirmed the win once, twice and a few more times that night and twice more the next morning. “There wasn’t much sleeping in our house that night,” the winner said.
What will she do with the prize? The winner plans to pay several bills, take care of some family debt and set funds aside for future trips.
“I didn’t expect to win those $500 prizes. I really didn’t expect to win this $50,000. Now, I know there’s no way I can win big again but, just in case,” she said, she’s sticking to her practice of playing a scratch-off after work.
If the Lottery’s Home Run Riches game’s $10 minimum win doesn’t draw you as it did our Deale player, maybe the fact that there is one more $50,000 top-prize winning ticket out there will have you trying this game. Home Run Riches has thousands of other prizes, too, ranging from $10 to $5,000.
Also celebrating their customer’s big win is the lucky Lottery retailer. Captain Kidd’s located at 5823 Deale-Churchton Road earned a $500 bonus from the Lottery for selling a top-prize scratch-off in the game.