Contact:  Andi Brancato, PR Director  517-335-5648
Agency:  Michigan Lottery Public Relations

LANSING, September 5, 2012 – A retiree from Columbus Township caught a lucky break after enduring hardship in the previous year. He won Fantasy 5 for $195,148 in the August 30 drawing!

The fortunate player, who wishes to remain anonymous, has played Fantasy 5 every day since it began in September of 2004.

When the player discovered he had won, he called his fiancée. “But I couldn’t understand a word he was saying because he was hyperventilating,” she laughs. When he finally made himself understood, the lucky player cautioned his fiancée not to tell anyone. “It was tough not to tell because I was with a good friend,” she said.

The winner plans to pay some debts, buy his daughter braces and purchase a car for his mom.

“This was very good news after a very hard year,” he said.

The winning ticket was sold at Meijer #105 located at 51095 Gratiot Ave. in Chesterfield Township.

Over 95 cents of every dollar spent on Lottery tickets is returned to the state in the form of contributions to the state School Aid Fund, prizes to players and commissions to retailers. In fiscal year 2011, the contribution to schools was over $727.3 million. Since its inception in 1972, the Lottery has contributed over $16 billion to education in Michigan.

For information on all Lottery games, please visit the Lottery’s Web site at www.michiganlottery.com.

 “The Michigan Lottery. All across the state good things happen.”