Eddie Staples wins first Monopoly second chance drawing |
Four additional Monopoly drawings remain
Conowingo resident Eddie Staples has had quite a year. At the end of January, he was overjoyed when the Maryland Lottery informed him that he had won a television through its Tech the Halls contest. He had no idea that win was just the beginning of his Lottery luck. Yesterday, he was selected from more than 107,000 entries as the first Monopoly second-chance contest $50,000 winner.
“I screamed when I learned I won the TV last month and my wife thought I was crazy,” the 35-year-old told Lottery officials. “When I found out I won the $50,000, I asked her if it was ok to scream this time.”
The lucky winner said that he had never won more than $100 before. “It’s still unbelievable,” he said. “I thought maybe when I got here and saw my name on the big check, I would believe it, but I still don’t.”
Eddie and his wife Christa, who have a seven-year-old autistic daughter, have big plans for the $50,000 prize. In addition to making a down payment on a house and buying a new computer for Christa, they will spend the winnings on a trip to Ocean City this summer to participate in Surfers Healing, which is a program that teaches autistic children to surf.
“We went last year, but we had to come home the same day,” the winner said. “This year, we’ll get to stay overnight, which will be great.”
The Monopoly scratch-off ticket has four instant $50,000 prizes remaining, along with four more second-chance drawings. To participate in the contest, players enter their non-winning Monopoly tickets through My Lottery Rewards.