Took ticket everywhere until claiming second-tier prize on Monday
An Oxford woman was dining with friends when the conversation turned to news about the $1 million winning Powerball ticket sold Saturday at a nearby Easton grocery.
Her friends had checked their tickets and, knowing she plays Powerball, urged her to do the same. Instead, the 50-something winner waited for a good time to step away from her meal and discreetly reviewed her Quick Pick ticket against the winning numbers. The woman had shopped at Acme Markets on the afternoon of the drawing and bought her ticket there instead of going to one of her regular Maryland Lottery retailers. What a shock to see her ticket matched the winning numbers!
Stunned, the Talbot County resident returned to her friends and finished her meal without talking about the Powerball win. After sharing her good news with her husband, she went online to check the numbers again and the payout information. They thought they had won $175,000.
“We were super happy for $175,000,” her husband said. Our winner tucked the ticket into a plastic bag and for the rest of the weekend kept it in her pocket. The ticket went everywhere she went, including aboard their sailboat! At some point Sunday night, the Eastern Shore couple rechecked the payout information and saw the ticket was worth $1 million. Her hands were still shaking when they arrived at Lottery headquarters in Baltimore on Monday morning!
The two plan to keep their win a secret and are unsure what they will do with the prize. The native Marylanders said they will give their adult children a nice surprise in the future. Acme Markets at 210 Marlboro Avenue in Easton will receive a $2,500 bonus from the Lottery for selling the winning ticket.