‘It was fate’: Man finds penny and scratches off NC lottery ticket. He won big
A North Carolina man used a “newfound penny” to scratch off his lottery ticket — and discovered a prize worth much more.
John Grant, 59, found the coin next to his truck before learning that he won $100,000, according to the N.C. Education Lottery.
“I guess it was fate,” Grant said, according to an Aug. 31 news release.
Grant basked in the lucky moment after he stopped at the May Way convenience store in Bolivia, a town roughly 20 miles southwest of Wilmington. While getting gas, officials said he also spent $30 to play the Fabulous Fortune scratch-off game.
That’s when Grant used a penny he had picked up from the ground to scratch his ticket. He checked the ticket while watching fisherman along the Intracoastal Waterway, according to the N.C. Education Lottery.
“My heart started beating real fast,” Grant said in the news release. “I wasn’t sure what I was seeing.”
It turns out, he hit the jackpot and kept $71,019 after taxes. Grant, a Brunswick County resident, hopes to save his prize money but also has considered getting a new pickup truck, officials said.
It’s not the first time coins have been tied to a big windfall.
Earlier in August, officials said a North Carolina dad needing quarters for laundry snagged a winning ticket from a convenience store.
BEHIND THE STORY
MOREWhen gambling is more than a game
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 August 31, 2022 at 3:24 PM with the headline "‘It was fate’: Man finds penny and scratches off NC lottery ticket. He won big."
