A stop for coffee on the way to work led a Saginaw County man to a $500,000 win playing the Michigan Lottery’s Win Big instant game!

Kevin Abbe, of Freeland, bought his winning ticket at the 7-Eleven, located at 4300 Wilder Road in Bay City. Freeland is about 15 miles northwest of Saginaw.

“I’m in a lottery club at work, and the club member who buys tickets bought two Win Big tickets from 7-Eleven, and we won $5,” said Abbe. “I was lazy and didn’t make my morning coffee that day, so I stopped at 7-Eleven to buy one on my way to our jobsite. While I was there, I bought the next two Win Big tickets.

“I scratched the tickets and couldn’t stop shaking when I saw I won $500,000! I scanned the ticket at the store, and then scanned it using the ticket scanner on the Lottery app. When the app confirmed my win, I yelled: ‘I just won half a million dollars!’ and ran out of the store.”

Abbe, 38, visited Lottery headquarters recently to claim his big prize. With his winnings, he plans to buy a house.

“Winning is unreal and still hasn’t fully sunk in,” said Abbe. “It feels like a breath of fresh air!”

“Instant games, like Win Big, are a favorite among players because of the thrill of never knowing when you may win a huge prize,” said Lottery Commissioner Suzanna Shkreli. “In Kevin’s case, what started out as a normal day quickly turned to a life-changing one when he stopped to buy a coffee on the way to work and won $500,000! Congratulations Kevin!”

Players have won more than $2 million playing the Win Big instant game, which launched Oct. 1. Each $5 ticket offers players a chance to win prizes ranging from $5 up to $500,000. More than $29 million in prizes remain, including two $500,000 prizes and 10 $2,000 prizes.

In 2023, Lottery players won nearly $1.8 billion playing instant games.

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