Prince George’s County man claims $525,000 prize
Pulling up to a gas station fuel pump only to find a broken pay-at-the-pump device sent an Upper Marlboro man on the path to a $525,000 Multi-Match jackpot win..
The 50-year-old restaurant manager is a big fan of the Maryland Lottery’s twice-weekly Multi-Match game.
“I like that it’s a Maryland game and the jackpots, while not the millions and millions that Powerball and Mega Millions have, are pretty significant – certainly big enough for me,” he said. On Monday, July 11, the Prince George’s County resident stopped for gas at Dash In #15521 in Upper Marlboro. Because of the broken device, he made the frustrating trip into the store where he bought gas and a Multi-Match ticket for the July 11 and July 14 drawings. He played one line of his own numbers – 2, 9, 14, 16, 20 and 38 – and let the terminal quick pick two more lines of numbers.
Up early the next day and well into his morning routine, the loyal player checked the Multi-Match results online. His numbers matched the winning numbers!
“I really didn’t believe what I was seeing,” he said. “The thought that kept running through my head was, ‘This can’t be real.’ ”
He woke his wife to help confirm the win. Eventually, the couple exhausted every possible way in which they could be reading the ticket or the results incorrectly. “It took a while, but we became convinced,” he said. “What an amazing morning!”
The cash option on the jackpot was $262,500, which the couple decided to take. They plan to go on a vacation and share their good fortune with family, friends and even strangers. “We’ve been contributing our time and money to a health clinic for people with few other options,” he said. “Our next donation is going to be a doozy.”
For selling the jackpot-winning ticket, the Lottery retailer also wins! The Lottery will give Dash In at 15501 Marlboro Pike a $1,000 bonus.