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Lottery player’s $1 ticket turns into $4.7 million jackpot win in North Carolina

A lottery player won a massive prize in North Carolina.
A lottery player won a massive prize in North Carolina. N.C. Education Lottery

A lottery player scored a life-changing win on a lucky day in North Carolina.

The player spent $1 on a ticket that won $4.7 million in the Outlaw’s Loot game, results show.

But the winner isn’t the only person who’s set to get richer. Another lottery player hit the jackpot in the Carolina Cash 5 game, making their ticket worth $318,544, the N.C. Education Lottery wrote in a news release.

Both players won big Thursday, July 3, meaning they had extra reasons to celebrate as they kicked off their Fourth of July weekend. Here’s where the lucky tickets came from:

  • Outlaw’s Loot ticket sold to an online player in Elm City
  • Cash 5 ticket sold in Maggie Valley

Outlaw’s Loot, a progressive jackpot game that features a prize wheel and digital icons, offers online tickets starting at 50 cents. The winner beat 1-in-50 million odds to score the top prize, lottery officials wrote on their website.

A spokesperson previously told McClatchy News the lottery can’t pinpoint where digital instant tickets are sold. But it knows the $4.7 million winner is from Elm City, a roughly 50-mile drive east from Raleigh.

Meanwhile, the Cash 5 ticket was sold at Maggie Valley Mart, a roughly 35-mile drive west from the mountain town of Asheville. To win a jackpot prize in that game, a player must match all five numbers picked in a drawing.

The winning numbers from the July 3 drawing: 7-8-17-23-40.

Lottery officials shared news of the wins July 4, when claims centers were closed for Independence Day. In North Carolina, jackpot winners have about six months to come forward, rules show.

Many people can gamble or play games of chance without harm. However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.

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.

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This story was originally published July 4, 2025 at 4:07 PM with the headline "Lottery player’s $1 ticket turns into $4.7 million jackpot win in North Carolina."

Simone Jasper
The News & Observer
Simone Jasper is a service journalism reporter at The News & Observer in Raleigh, North Carolina.
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