A Grand Rapids man almost threw away his ticket before realizing he won $500,000 playing the Michigan Lottery’s $500,000 Jumbo Cash instant game.

The lucky player, who chose to remain anonymous, bought his winning ticket at the Meijer gas station, located at 213 Wilson Avenue Northwest in Grand Rapids.

“I like to play the new instant games each month, so I bought a few of the $500,000 Jumbo Cash tickets,” said the player. “I scratched the ticket off and thought it was a loser. I looked it over one more time before throwing it away and realized I’d matched the seven. When I revealed the amount, I thought: ‘This can’t be. This kind of luck never happens to me.’

“I couldn’t believe it. It still hasn’t sunk in yet,” the player said.

The lucky 74-year-old player visited Lottery headquarters to claim his prize. With his winnings, he plans to pay off debt and purchase a new home.

Players have won more than $4 million playing $500,000 Jumbo Cash which launched in May 2021. Each $5 ticket offers players a chance to win prizes ranging from $5 up to $500,000. More than $27 million in prizes remain, including two top prizes of $500,000 and 19 $2,000 prizes.

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

In 2020, Lottery players won more than $1.5 billion playing instant games.