LANSING, November 17, 1998 – After a long day at work, Paula Sample of Detroit stopped at a 7-Eleven store in her neighborhood to pick up a winning number report.  What she saw on that report changed her life! Sample matched the first five numbers in the November 13 Big Game drawing to win the $150,000 prize.  That day’s winning numbers were: 5, 7, 18, 26, 45 and the Big Money Ball number was 15.

"I took the winning number report home but had forgotten about it by the time I got there because I was so tired after a long day at work," Sample said.  "I had been home about an hour before I remembered that I had it.  I got out my tickets, went through them and realized that on one of them I had matched all five numbers.  I was completely dumbfounded!  I looked at the numbers at least 10 times before I really believed that I had won $150,000!"

Sample, 46, who has been playing the Lottery regularly for the past 10 years, purchased the winning Big Game "easy pick" ticket at Arbor Drugs, Inc. #8052, 19818 Kelly Road, in Harper Woods.

The waitress said she plans to use her winnings to pay bills, make home repairs and get a couple of special things for herself.

Sample offered the following advice for other hopeful Lottery players: "It’s all dumb luck and an extra $2 in your pocket!  If you don’t buy a ticket, you can’t possibly win!"

The Big Game is a six-state lottery game which held its first drawing in September 1996.  Lotteries in Michigan, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts and Virginia contribute to the joint prize pool.  Big Game drawings are conducted every Tuesday and Friday at 11 p.m.  The next Big Game drawing will be conducted tonight – the expected jackpot is $22 million.

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