An Ingham County man says winning $500,000 playing the Michigan Lottery’s Holiday Gold instant game will be life changing.

The lucky player, who chose to remain anonymous, bought his winning ticket at Rich Oil, located at 601 West Bellevue in Leslie. Leslie is about 25 miles south of Lansing.

“I like playing the new instant games when they come out, so I bought a Holiday Gold ticket,” said the 60-year-old player. “I scratched it when I got home and had a moment of disbelief. It took me about a half hour to tell my wife.

“It’s still sinking in that I won, but I know this will change my life. I’ll be able to pay some bills, and then maybe even retire a little sooner than I had planned.”

Players have won more than $3 million playing Holiday Gold, which launched in October. Each $10 ticket offers players a chance to win prizes ranging from $10 up to $500,000. More than $25 million in prizes remain, including two $500,000 and 15 $2,000 prizes.

Lottery instant games may be purchased at 10,500 retailers across the state.

In 2019, Lottery players won more than $1.2 billion playing instant games.