Lottery ticket bought as a joke turns into a $200,000 win
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RALEIGH, North Carolina (WGHP) — A round of good humor led to a $200,000 win for Robert McKinney of Gibsonville after he played the 10th Anniversary Spectacular scratch-off game.
“I bought the ticket as a joke,” McKinney said.
He won $50 on a scratch-off ticket last week, and was joking with a friend that he was going to win again when he decided to buy two $5 scratch-off tickets.
“I showed them to my friend and told her, ‘I’ll show you how to win on a scratch-off ticket.'”
When McKinney scratched the ticket, he realized it wasn’t a joke and that he’d won the top prize.
“I was in shock,” McKinney said. “I just started shaking.”
He claimed his prize Monday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh. After required state and federal tax withholdings, he took home $138,501. He plans to use some of the money to take his six grandkids to Disney World.
McKinney bought the lucky ticket at the Fairway One Stop on Chapel Hill Road in Burlington.
10th Anniversary Spectacular launched in April with six top prizes of $200,000. Two remain unclaimed.