LANSING, May 13, 2000 — A lucky Detroit man said he consistently plays the same numbers in the Michigan Lottery’s Keno game because they are "special" to him and he knew they would pay off one day!

That day came for the 57-year-old winner, who requested anonymity, when he learned he had matched 10 of the Keno numbers drawn on Tuesday, June 29, 1999 — 4, 11, 19, 23, 25, 43, 46, 47, 49 and 51!

"A few days after the drawing I went to the store to pick up a winning number report," the winner said. "I checked the tickets right away and called my brother as soon as I got home to tell him I had won. I have stuck with the same numbers all along and it really paid off!"

Even though he knew right away he had won, the lucky man waited almost a year to collect his prize. He said he wasn’t in any hurry to collect his money.

"I didn’t want to rush things," he said. "I wanted to take some time to think about what I should do with that much money."

The Detroit man said the only Michigan Lottery game he plays is Keno, and he has been playing it off and on for the past 27 years. The winning ticket was purchased at Rite Aid Discount Pharmacy #4516, 1120 Griswold, in Detroit.

Prior to turning the winning ticket in at Lottery headquarters in Lansing, the winner kept it in a safe place in his house.

The Keno game is designed to appeal to players wanting better odds of winning a prize. To play Keno, a player selects 10 numbers between one and 80. The Lottery draws 22 numbers from the field of one to 80. Players win if they match six, seven, eight, nine or all 10 of the numbers on their ticket to the 22 drawn by the Lottery, or even if they match no numbers at all. A player matching 10 numbers wins $250,000; nine numbers wins $2,500; eight wins $250; seven wins $25; six wins $7 and matching zero numbers wins a free $1 instant game ticket.

Keno drawings are held every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.

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