A Virginia woman won an eye-popping sum after accidentally purchasing the wrong lottery ticket at a gas station.
Carrollton resident Kelly Lindsay bought the winning ticket at a Race Way station in her town in January. She was initially unhappy about “being given the wrong ticket,” she told officials, having wanted to play a different lottery game.
But that Money Blitz ticket ended up containing the correct numbers for the game’s second-place prize of $2 million. Lindsay scratched the ticket in the parking lot and soon learned of her good fortune.
“And I got over not being happy about it!” she joked.
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Though she won the $2 million prize, she opted to take home a smaller amount all at once.
“Ms. Lindsay had the choice of taking the full $2 million prize in annual payments over 30 years or a one-time cash option of $1,250,000 before taxes,” the Virginia Lottery explained. She chose the cash option.”
According to the Virginia Lottery, one more top prize is still unclaimed. The chances of winning the top prize are less than one in a million.
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“The chances of winning the top prize are 1 in 1,142,400,” the lottery noted. “The chances of winning any prize in this game are 1 in 3.29.”
The Virginia Lottery added that all profits go to supporting K-12 education in Old Dominion.
“Ms. Lindsay lives in Isle of Wight County, which received more than $3.7 million in Lottery funds for K-12 education last fiscal year,” the statement added. “In Fiscal Year 2024, the Lottery raised more than $934 million for K-12 education, making up approximately 10 percent of Virginia’s total K-12 school budget.”
Lindsay’s lottery win is one of many that have occurred by accident. Last fall, an Illinois lottery player won $9.2 million after playing the wrong game.
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