Man scratching lottery ticket in Missouri drive-thru thinks he lost. Then comes shock

A man won a big lottery prize thanks to a lucky last-second decision while on the way to ball practice, Missouri officials say.

“We stopped to get a bottle of water before ball practice,” the man told lottery officials in a Dec. 17 news release. “I wasn’t even sure I was going to get a ticket.”

He saw a “200X the Cash” game in the seventh slot while at the gas station. The numbers reminded him of a family member’s birthday and he suddenly felt lucky enough to take a chance, officials said.

But he wasn’t in a big hurry to check the $20 ticket.

“I scratched the ticket a couple of hours later while waiting in the drive-thru,” he added. “Not seeing any symbols, I didn’t think I won.”

Thankfully he didn’t crumple it up and throw it away. He scanned the ticket and “was shocked to learn he had won $100,000,” officials said.

“As luck would have it, he didn’t need to uncover any of the game’s multiplier symbols in order to win,” the release said.

The man purchased the ticket at Culver’s Hawkins 66 in St. Joseph, according to officials.

St. Joseph is a roughly 50-mile drive north from Kansas City.

This story was originally published December 17, 2024 at 1:18 PM with the headline "Man scratching lottery ticket in Missouri drive-thru thinks he lost. Then comes shock."