‘Laid-back’ lottery player gets a ‘real shock’ after scanning Powerball ticket

A “laid-back” man scanned his Powerball ticket and was left with a prize he couldn’t believe, Maryland officials said.

The Delaware man usually doesn’t try to “get too high or too low when life throws him a curveball,” but when he scanned the $10 Quick Pick ticket, he learned of his $50,000 prize, giving him a “real shock,” according to an Oct. 15 news release by the Maryland Lottery.

It was revealed during the Aug. 31 drawing that his ticket matched four of the winning numbers and the Powerball, officials said.

“I must have scanned it five times, sure that it would change,” he told officials. “It took a lot, but I kept my cool.”

The man occasionally plays lottery games and sometimes travels to Maryland to do so. He bought the winning ticket in Elkton, officials said.

The medical specialist likes the fact that he “can remain anonymous” if he wins big money, officials said.

“I want to keep it quiet when I win my millions,” he told officials.

The winner said some of his prize will go toward organizing a family event, the release said.

Elkton is about a 60-mile drive northeast of Baltimore.

What to know about Powerball

To score the jackpot in the Powerball, a player must match all five white balls and the red Powerball.

The odds of scoring the jackpot prize are 1 in 292,201,338.

Tickets can be bought on the day of the drawing, but sales times and price vary by state.

Drawings are broadcast Saturdays, Mondays and Wednesdays at 10:59 p.m. ET and can be streamed online.

Powerball is played in 45 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

This story was originally published October 15, 2024 at 12:58 PM with the headline "‘Laid-back’ lottery player gets a ‘real shock’ after scanning Powerball ticket."