This loyal Powerball player from Halethorpe discovered his $50,000 prize after awakening with an itchy hand and an odd feeling.
Baltimore County man wins third-tier prize in Jan. 25 drawing
A retired U.S. Army veteran from Baltimore County awoke to a strange feeling last week that led to a visit to Lottery headquarters. The funny feeling experienced by Andrew Truffer Jr. is his finely-tuned fortune detector, a combination of unsettledness and itchy palms that tells him something related to money is about to happen. In this case, it was the Powerball ticket he picked up that won a $50,000 prize.
The Halethorpe resident says he plays regularly, buying a Powerball ticket and the odd scratch-off for fun and as a way to pass the time. As a regular player, Andrew was well aware of the climbing Powerball jackpot when he stopped at Maiden Choice Liquors in Baltimore to buy a ticket for the Jan. 25 drawing.
He discovered his win when he awoke in the middle of the night with a strange feeling and an itchy hand. He told Lottery officials that this familiar omen usually happens before something strange occurs involving money. He took a quick look at his Powerball ticket and checked it with the results of that evening’s drawing. Sure enough, Andrew had several matches!
The 61-year-old initially thought he had won $100 – well above the prizes he had scored playing Powerball – but was startled when he scanned the ticket the next day at a Lottery retailer. He had won $50,000!
“I had to tell someone about my luck, so I called my sister. When I told her, I thought she was going to pass out,” he said. When asked about his own celebration after claiming the prize, the winner said, “I’ll probably celebrate with a cocktail and a cigar!”
Andrew’s lucky retailer, Maiden Choice Liquors, is located at 1064 Maiden Choice Lane in Baltimore. He won his $50,000 prize by matching four white balls and the red Power Ball.
There’s still time to get your Powerball tickets for the Wednesday, Feb. 1 drawing. The jackpot has rolled to an estimated annuity of $653 million with an estimated cash option of $350.5 million.
