An Oakland County man kept scratching to see if he’d won more cash even after winning $1 million playing the Michigan Lottery’s Hit $500 instant game.
The lucky player, who chose to remain anonymous, revealed a “star” symbol on his ticket above “1MIL” to win the big prize automatically. He bought his winning ticket at the Pine Lake Market, located at 3391 Orchard Lake Road in Keego Harbor.
After learning he was a $1 million winner, the player continued scratching his other Lottery tickets. The fact he was a millionaire didn’t sink in until after he finished scratching his other tickets.
The player recently visited Lottery headquarters to claim his big prize. He chose to receive his prize as a one-time lump sum payment of $634,517 rather than an annuity. With his winnings, he plans to buy a new car and then save the remainder.
Hit $500 is one of the newest instant games offered by the Lottery. For just $10, each ticket offers players a chance to win prizes ranging from $10 up to $1 million. Since the game’s launch in in April, players have won nearly $6.3 million. More than $61 million in prizes remain, including two $1 million top prizes, 42 $10,000 prizes, and 127 $1,000 prizes.
Lottery instant games may be purchased at 11,000 retailers across the state.
In 2015, Lottery players won more than $722.1 million playing instant games.