LANSING, August 20, 2002 Thony Gardner of Detroit could not believe he had won a $175,000 Mega Millions prize after matching the first five numbers in the August 13 drawing! The winning numbers for that day’s drawing were: 3, 10, 15, 18, 25 and the Gold Mega Ball number was 52.

The winning "easy pick" Mega Millions ticket was purchased at Marathon Stop and Go, 21000 Kelly Road, in Eastpointe. Gardner, a hi-lo driver for Daimler-Chrysler, said he had an extraordinarily lucky Lottery day—he also won a prize on a ticket he purchased using a free "Lucky Days at McDonald’s" promotional coupon!

"After I left work, I went to the gas station to get a winning number report," Gardner said. "When I saw that I had matched the first five numbers, I couldn’t believe it! I asked for another report just to make sure it was not a mistake."

The lucky 38-year-old winner said he enjoys working on classic cars in his free time, and recently was involved in the Woodward Dream Cruise in Detroit. He added that he kept the winning ticket in his wallet at all times to ensure its safety before turning it in at Lottery headquarters in Lansing. He told Lottery officials that he plans to use his winnings to take a Disney World vacation with his daughter and to pay bills.

The last Big Game drawing took place on Tuesday, May 14. On Wednesday, May 15, The Big Game was replaced by Mega Millions. Mega Millions is a multistate lottery game in Michigan, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio and Virginia. Wagers cost $1 each and tickets may be purchased at more than 7,000 Michigan Lottery retailers statewide.

Mega Millions drawings are conducted every Tuesday and Friday at 11 p.m. The next Mega Millions drawing is tonight, Tuesday, August 20, with an estimated jackpot of $78 million. For more information about Mega Millions, visit the Michigan Lottery’s Web site, www.michigan.gov/lottery.

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