Allegany County resident brought ticket home to wife to scratch
After weeks of playing THE BIG SPIN scratch-offs, Lantis and Tammy Edwards of Cumberland knew what to do when she revealed yet another SPIN symbol in the $5 game. She had revealed the symbol several times before only to have the digital reveal at a retailer lead to cash payouts of $10, $15 and $50.
This time, however, Lantis experienced a far different result when he phoned her after taking the instant ticket back to Sheetz in Cresaptown for the digital reveal. They had won their hoped-for trip to Lottery headquarters in Baltimore to try their luck on The Big Spin Wheel.
“I felt like the boy in ‘Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory’ when he found the lucky ticket,” Tammy said. “Lantis called me on the phone and said, ‘You’re not going to believe this! I got the Big Spin!’ He was hooting and hollering.”
Lantis and Tammy left the Lottery Winner’s Circle $90,000 richer, after Lantis gave the 6-foot-tall Big Spin Wheel a whirl. He and his wife plan to pay bills with the prize and possibly buy a new vehicle. The couple, who are approaching their 24th wedding anniversary, have a fun routine when it comes to playing Lottery games. Lantis plays a variety of scratch-offs and other games but always comes home from work with THE BIG SPIN scratch-offs for his wife to enjoy.
“I never thought in a million years this would happen,” Tammy said.
A U.S. Marine Corps veteran, Lantis is a small-business owner in Western Maryland and said he plans to keep working after the big win. Tammy retired a few years ago.
The Edwards are the fourth players to try their luck with The Big Spin Wheel, with the three other winners taking home $90,000, $100,000 and $125,000. The game arrived in stores in April and shot to No. 1 on the Lottery’s Top 40 Scratch-offs list. Four of the game’s wheel-spin prizes remain unclaimed, along with three $50,000 instant-win prizes and thousands of other instant prizes ranging from $5 to $5,000.
For its role in the couple’s happy story, Sheetz can celebrate. The store located at 14606 McMillen Highway in Cresaptown earns a $900 bonus from the Lottery.
Lantis and Tammy Edwards won $90,000 on The Big Spin Wheel.
