Lottery player thought he missed out on jackpot prize. Then came a ‘blessing’ in NC

Right as Pernell Shoulars Jr. bought a Fast Play ticket, the North Carolina man saw the game’s jackpot had been won and assumed his chances were shot, he told lottery officials.

Then the clerk at Short Trip in Fayetteville told Shoulars something he didn’t expect.

“I thought someone else hit it right before me,” Shoulars, a 44-year-old contractor, said. “Then he told me, ‘You did it, you hit it.’”

His $10 Triple Win ticket — which he bought Friday, July 29 — had just turned into a $272,829 win.

Shoulars told lottery officials he immediately called his wife, who was at a convention with friends and popped a bottle of Champagne in celebration.

“We’re just ecstatic,” he said. “It’s truly a blessing.”

The odds of winning a Fast Play jackpot are 1 in 320,000.

Shoulars claimed his prize Tuesday in Raleigh, taking home $193,739 after state and federal tax withholdings. He said he plans to use the winnings to work on his house, invest in his business and take a vacation with his wife.

“We’re going to enjoy it,” Shoulars said, “but we’re going to be smart with it too.”

This story was originally published August 4, 2022 at 2:28 PM with the headline "Lottery player thought he missed out on jackpot prize. Then came a ‘blessing’ in NC."