Man realizes he won $2 million from Michigan Lottery 4 months after buying scratch-off ticket
ISABELLA COUNTY, Mich. (FOX 2) - A Michigan man said he drove around with a $2 million winning lottery ticket in his center console for months before realizing it was a winner.
The 29-year-old man said he bought the ticket at Shepherd E-Z Mart at 550 East Wright Ave. in Isabella County but thought it was a loser.
"About four months ago, I bought this Money ticket, but I didn’t see any winnings on it when I scratched it, so I threw it in my center console with some other non-winning tickets," he said.
It stayed there until his wife asked him to check some other tickets to see if they were winners.
"About a week ago, my wife gave me a few tickets to take to the store and check, so I grabbed the tickets in my center console to double check. When I scanned the Money ticket, I got a message to file a claim at the Lottery office," he said. "I went back out to my truck to look the ticket over and realized I’d matched number 13. When I revealed the ‘$2 MIL’ symbol underneath, I was speechless. It is a miracle this ticket didn’t end up in the trash!"
He chose to receive his prize as a one-time lump sum payment of about $1.3 million, rather than annuity payments for the full amount. He plans to invest his winnings.