A program specialist for the federal government enjoyed a $100,000 reward for accepting a Maryland Lottery player’s challenge to take a break from her Lottery routine.
The Silver Spring resident scratches instant tickets once a week and only plays $1 and $2 games. Her reward for accepting the challenge of another customer? A top-prize win on the $10 $100,000 Crossword game, which will have a dramatic effect on her family’s life.
The 51-year-old wife and mother of two was out shopping on a Saturday when she stopped in at Long Branch Beer & Wine in Silver Spring.
“I play when I go grocery shopping, which ends up being about once a week,” she said. “On the way, I always pick up a couple of scratch tickets. It felt weird paying $5 for a Lottery ticket, so I stuck to the lower-priced games. I did pretty well with them, too. I’ve won as much as $50.”
As she was studying the instant ticket selection at the Montgomery County retailer, the player received what turned out to be good advice. “A man next to me suggested that I try a $10 ticket, that the prizes were much bigger than my $1 games. I figured, ‘Why not?’ ”
After picking out the $100,000 Crossword game, she decided to step even further from her regular practice. “I always scratch my tickets at home — always! But this time, I did it right there.”
The Montgomery County woman was shocked by what she saw! She immediately scanned the instant ticket and then asked the cashier to check the game, too. The cashier kicked off her celebration.
“He started yelling! There were a lot of people in there and in a minute or two, they were all gathering around to congratulate me,” the winner said. While the store’s staff was certainly happy for this lucky lady’s win, Long Branch Beer & Wine is also a winner. The store located at 649 University Boulevard East earns a $1,000 bonus from the Lottery for selling a top-prize scratch-off of $100,000 or more.
The happy winner plans to put her prize to use immediately. “My house is a mess right now,” she said, “because we’re renovating several rooms. This will help us get it done faster so that my family can enjoy it in a month or two instead of six.”
Her lucky game debuted last November with eight $100,000 top prizes; one top prize remains. The game also contains four unclaimed $10,000 prizes and thousands of others ranging from $10 to $1,000.