Oakland County Woman Wins $1 Million on the Michigan Lottery’s The Big Spin Show

Posted on April 11, 2023 by MI_Lottery


An Oakland County woman felt like her heart stopped beating when she won $1 million on the Michigan Lottery’s The Big Spin show.

Karen Finger, of Farmington Hills, won the big prize after spinning the prize wheel on The Big Spin show hosted by Detroit basketball champion, John Salley. Finger was selected to participate in the show after entering codes from non-winning The Big Spin tickets online.

“I was in complete disbelief when I got the call from the Lottery informing me that I was chosen as a The Big Spin contestant,” said Finger. “It took a while for it to sink in that the call was real and that I was going to be on The Big Spin show.

Karen Finger (left) and her husband Jeffrey Finger (right)“When I spun the wheel, it felt like it was spinning forever. Once it finally landed on $1 million, it felt like my heart stopped beating. It was the most unbelievable feeling I have ever experienced! Winning this prize is life changing. I plan to use the money to take a trip and complete some home improvements.”

Finger, 46, was one of five players selected for The Big Spin show in a random drawing. The second chance component of The Big Spin game has ended. All told, 20 players were selected to appear on The Big Spin show. Each player selected spun The Big Spin wheel and had a chance to win up to $2 million. All the players who spun The Big Spin wheel were guaranteed to win at least $100,000.

Players won more than $10.5 million on The Big Spin show.

Each $10 The Big Spin ticket offers players a chance to instantly win prizes ranging from $10 up to $1 million. Players have won more than $14 million playing The Big Spin which launched in September. More than $56 million in prizes remain, including two $1 million top prizes, four $10,000 prizes, and 118 $1,000 prizes.

In 2022, Lottery players won more than $1.7 billion playing instant games.

Instant games may be purchased at the Lottery’s 10,500 retailers across the state.

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Viva Las Jackpots Online Instant Game Added to Second Chance Progressive Jackpot Line Up

Posted on April 10, 2023 by MI_Lottery

Second Chance Progressive Jackpot graphicThe Viva Las Jackpots online instant game has been added to the Second Chance Progressive Jackpot line up giving players a chance at huge second chance jackpots.

The Viva Las Jackpots online instant game is scheduled to launch April 11 and will give players a chance to win up to $40,000 instantly. By playing Viva Las Jackpots online, players will automatically earn entries in to the Second Chance Progressive Jackpot. For every $0.50 wagered playing Viva Las Jackpots, players will earn one entry into the Second Chance Progressive Jackpot drawing for the current month.

The Second Chance Progressive Jackpot is funded by select online instant games. There are four games currently available for the promotion: Monthly Jackpot, Mystery Vault, Lucky Start, and Michigan Multiplier Wilds. After the entry period has closed each month, a random drawing takes place with one jackpot winner being selected from all entries for that month.

11 Monthly Second Chance Progressive Jackpot prizes have been awarded since the promotion began:

  • February 2023 – $261,935 progressive jackpot prize.
  • January 2023 – $403,618 progressive jackpot prize
  • December 2022 – $125,514 progressive jackpot prize
  • November 2022 – $110,689 progressive jackpot prize
  • October 2022 – $97,885 progressive jackpot prize
  • September 2022 – $99,821 progressive jackpot prize
  • August 2022 – $104,730 progressive jackpot prize
  • July 2022 – $121,668 progressive jackpot prize
  • June 2022 – $139,221 progressive jackpot prize
  • May 2022 – $178,116 progressive jackpot prize
  • April 2022 – $338,256 progressive jackpot prize

Entries are only valid for the entry period in which they were earned. Each month, a new drawing period begins, and the progressive jackpot is reset to $5,000. The next drawing will take place April 12.

For more information regarding the Monthly Second Chance Progressive Jackpot please visit: http://www.michiganlottery.com/promotions/monthly-second-chance-progressive-jackpot.

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Wayne County Woman Wins $1 Million Powerball Prize from the Michigan Lottery

Posted on April 7, 2023 by MI_Lottery

Powerball LogoA Wayne County woman had a Powerball ticket for six weeks before realizing she had won a $1 million prize.

Eileen Wickett, of Northville, matched the five white balls in the Feb. 6 drawing to win the big prize: 05-11-22-23-69. She bought her winning ticket online at MichiganLottery.com.

“I always play the same sets of numbers and I use the subscription feature so that I don’t miss a drawing,” said Wickett. “I saw an email from the Lottery informing me I’d won a prize, but it didn’t say how much I’d won so I assumed it was a few dollars.

“Since I have a subscription and my tickets are automatically purchased, I didn’t log on to my account for a while. It wasn’t until six weeks after I’d won that I logged into my account and saw a $1 million prize pending. It was such an awesome feeling! I called my kids right away to tell them the good news.”

Wickett recently visited Lottery headquarters to claim her prize. With her winnings, she plans to complete home improvements, take a vacation, and share with family.

The Powerball jackpot was last won on Feb. 6. One ticket bought in Washington won the $754.6 million jackpot. The current jackpot stands at $186 million.

Powerball plays may be purchased for $2 each at Lottery retailers across the state and online at MichiganLottery.com. A “Power Play” option that multiplies non-jackpot prizes by up to 10 times to a maximum of $2 million may be added to any Powerball play for only $1. For an additional $1 per play, Double Play may be added to a Powerball ticket, giving players a second chance to win up to $10 million in the nightly Double Play drawing.

The Powerball drawing takes place at 10:59 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday and may be watched live online at: http://www.powerball.com. Powerball tickets are sold in 45 states, Washington D.C., U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.

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Kalamazoo County Educator Wins Excellence in Education Award from the Michigan Lottery

Posted on April 4, 2023 by MI_Lottery

Chris Furlong holding $1,500 Excellence in Education checkA Kalamazoo County educator known for being a mentor to students and colleagues has been honored with an Excellence In Education award from the Michigan Lottery.

The award winner, Chris Furlong, is a high school health teacher at Portage Northern High School. The school is part of Portage Public Schools.

The Michigan Lottery established the Excellence In Education awards in 2014 to recognize outstanding public-school educators across the state during the school year.

Winners of the weekly award receive a plaque, a $1,500 cash prize, and a $500 grant to their classroom, school, or school district. One of the weekly winners will be selected as the Educator of the Year and will receive a $10,000 cash prize.

Each winner also is featured in a news segment on the Lottery’s media partner stations: WXYZ-TV in Detroit, FOX 17 in Grand Rapids, FOX 47 in Lansing, and WNEM-TV in Saginaw. The news segment featuring Furlong will air this evening.

Furlong says teachers he had in school led him to pursue a career in education.

“I had several teachers in my past that did so much for me to impact my growth and I wanted to do the same for others and give back to the community. It is the students and the relationships I build with them that keeps me going.”

Furlong says building relationships outside of class time is one of his favorite parts of teaching.

“I play Rock, Paper, Scissors with my kids before class, I like playing music before my classes start, or doing a quick pop quiz to get kids engaged. All of these things break down barriers between me as the teacher and my students and help us build a relationship and fun learning environment.”

A colleague nominated Furlong for the award. The nomination cited his willingness to go above and beyond for his students, athletes, and colleagues.

“Chris is not only a teacher, but a coach and a mentor to all the kids and fellow staff and teachers. He goes above and beyond daily to make sure those that need something, big or small, are taken care of. Chris having no children of his own, makes it a priority for every athlete and student he encounters to feel welcomed, engaged and taken care of mentally, physically, and socially.”

Furlong earned a bachelor’s degree from Olivet College. He has been an educator for 15 years, the last 10 in his current position.

Excellence in Education award nominees are evaluated on the following criteria:

  • Excellence – Their work consistently helps students and/or their schools or school districts advance to higher levels of academic achievement.
  • Dedication – They consistently go above and beyond expectations to help students succeed.
  • Inspiration – Their work inspires others around them to exceed expectations either academically or professionally.
  • Leadership – They demonstrate clear leadership skills in their positions with their school or school districts.
  • Effectiveness – The nominee’s work has clear and positive results on the educational advancement of students within the school or school district.
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$4.38 Million Lotto 47 Jackpot Won; Winning Ticket Bought in Lathrup Village

Posted on April 3, 2023 by MI_Lottery

Lotto 47 LogoA lucky Michigan Lottery player is a millionaire after winning a Lotto 47 jackpot worth $4.38 million Saturday night.

One ticket matched the winning Lotto 47 numbers drawn Saturday: 04-08-17-19-24-45. The winning ticket was bought at Lathrup Village Convenience, located at 28939 Southfield Road in Lathrup Village. Lathrup Village is about 20 miles southwest of Sterling Heights.

This is the second time the Lotto 47 jackpot has been won in 2023. The Lotto 47 jackpot was last won on Jan. 7 when a Livingston County man won a $1.15 million jackpot.

The lucky player should contact the Lottery’s Player Relations division at 844-887-6836, option 2 to setup an appointment to claim their prize. Lotto 47 tickets are valid for one year from the date of the drawing.

Each Lotto 47 play is only $1. Players select six numbers from one to 47 for a chance to win a jackpot starting at $1 million and that grows until someone wins it. For an additional $1 per play, Double Play may be added to a Lotto 47 ticket, giving players a second chance to win up to $1.5 million in the nightly Double Play drawing. For an additional $1 per game, players may add EZMatch to their ticket for a chance to win up to $500 instantly. Lotto 47 drawings take place on Wednesday and Saturday at 7:29 p.m. Tickets may be purchased at a retailer or online at MichiganLottery.com until 7:08 p.m. on the day of the drawing.

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