Lottery player tries something new — and wins big in NC. ‘Am I dreaming?’
A lottery player tried a game she hadn’t played before — and won a huge prize.
“I was like, ‘Is this real or am I dreaming?” Vannesa Hidalgo told the North Carolina Education Lottery. “I couldn’t believe it.”
Her $100,000 win was the real deal, and now she hopes to spend her prize money on her family.
“I’m just really shocked,” Hidalgo told lottery officials in a Sept. 22 news release.
The winner has a lot to celebrate after stopping at Singh’s Mart in Monroe, a roughly 25-mile drive southeast from uptown Charlotte. While at the convenience store, she spent $30 on her winning ticket for the 200X The Cash scratch-off game.
“That was my first time playing that,” said Hidalgo, who lives in Monroe and kept $71,758 after taxes.
It’s not the first time someone has experienced beginner’s luck in North Carolina. Another lottery player tried his luck on tickets he had never bought before, scoring $500 and $1 million wins, McClatchy News reported in 2024.
