Construction manager claims Deluxe Crossword game’s $50,000 top prize
A 26-year-old construction manager from Mount Rainier finds that enjoying lunch away from the worksite provides him with a welcome break. Two or three times a week, a Maryland Lottery scratch-off finds its way onto his plate along with a sandwich or slice of pizza. His “side” of scratch-off became the main course – and then some – this week when a Deluxe Crossword instant ticket produced a $50,000 top-prize win.
“I bought two of them,” the lucky supervisor told Maryland Lottery officials. “The first one won me $5, which put me in a good mood.” The second of the $5 Deluxe Crossword scratch-offs revealed a $50,000 prize and put him in an entirely different mood.
“I was in shock. I don’t think I moved at all,” he said. “I know I didn’t breathe. Everything just froze.”
The only thing that he could think of was to call his dad, a longtime Lottery player who he figured would know what to do. “He didn’t believe me at first, but when he did he got me moving. I was still in shock, but I knew what to do.”
The only piece of advice that the lucky player couldn’t heed, it seems, was his father’s recommendation to get a good night’s sleep. “I didn’t sleep a wink. I was just too excited,” said the winner.
The Prince George’s County resident plans to share his prize with his family, pay bills and save the remainder for the future. He found his two winning Deluxe Crossword instant tickets at the Tiger Mart located at 6117 Baltimore Avenue in Riverdale. The lucky retailer is also enjoying his win because Tiger Mart earns a $500 bonus from the Lottery for selling a top-prize winning scratch-off.
Want to try your luck with his game? Plenty of prizes remain. Players can hunt for eight more $50,000 top-prize winning scratch-offs in the game as well as 20 $10,000 prizes. The new Deluxe Crossword game debuted in late August.