Husband thought wife ‘saw a mouse.’ Her scream was for their winning NC lottery ticket
A North Carolina man heard his wife screaming — and “thought she saw a mouse.”
But instead, she had the outburst because the couple scored a big lottery prize, according to the N.C. Education Lottery.
“We’ve never won anything like this before so I was very excited,” winner Douglas Tyler said in a Feb. 23 news release.
Tyler hit the jackpot after a trip to the Lucky Den in Creedmoor, roughly 15 miles northeast of Durham. While at the aptly named store, officials said he spent $2 on a ticket for the Lucky Clover game.
Tyler said his wife checked the ticket but didn’t realize how much it was worth at first.
“I guess she just missed the winning number,” Tyler told officials.
The next day, he heard his wife yelling and didn’t know what was going on.
“I thought she saw a mouse or something,” Tyler told the N.C. Education Lottery while laughing.
It turns out, she was yelling over the ticket her husband bought. When the two scanned the ticket, she discovered it was worth $119,186, a portion of the rolling jackpot prize in the Lucky Clover game, officials said.
Tyler — a 65-year-old from Oxford — kept $84,921 after taxes. He said he plans to save his prize money and spend some on repairs to his home.
It’s not the first time a lottery win has left a spouse screaming. In Iowa, a man’s wife started yelling when he called to tell her he was getting richer, McClatchy News reported on Feb. 16.
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Gambling is designed to be a source of entertainment.
If you or a loved one shows signs of gambling addiction, you can seek help by calling the national gambling hotline at 1-800-522-4700 or visiting the National Council on Problem Gambling website.
This story was originally published February 23, 2023 at 11:44 AM with the headline "Husband thought wife ‘saw a mouse.’ Her scream was for their winning NC lottery ticket."
