Lottery Player Heard Somebody Local Won $1 Million Prize, Then Realized It Was Them: ‘I Was Freaking Out’

An extremely lucky lottery player now has plenty of money to put aside for a rainy day.

The Illinois Lottery announced earlier this week that the player, who chose to go by the pseudonym “Rainy Day Fund,” won a prize worth $1 million after buying $10 worth of lottery tickets.

“I play the lottery once in a while when I have extra cash,” the winner told lottery officials. “I hadn’t played in a while, but the jackpot was nearly $12 million, so after filling up my gas tank, I decided to buy $10 worth of Lotto tickets with the Extra Shot add-on.”

The lucky person purchased the winning Lotto ticket at a Citgo gas station in Justice, Ill., according to lottery officials.Their ticket matched all six Lotto Million 1 numbers in the July 10 drawing, resulting in the $1 million prize. 

The winner told lottery officials they found out the happy news after hearing at work that someone in Justice had won. 

“That’s where I bought my ticket, so I scanned mine with the app,” the winner remarked. “At first, I thought I had won $1,000. Then I scanned it again, and a few more zeroes popped up. I had to do a double take and scanned it about 20 more times before it finally sank in. I was freaking out.”

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Asked about what they plan to do with their winnings, they said they will use it for sound financial decision-making and to celebrate. 

“My friends are in the financial industry, so I’m hoping they’ll help me invest wisely,” the winner told the lottery. “But one thing’s for sure—I’ll be using some of it for my wedding and honeymoon next year.”

If you or someone you know is struggling with a gambling problem, please contact the National Problem Gambling Helpline Network at 1-800-522-4700 or go to gamtalk.org.