An American man has won a $150,000 lottery prize, which works out to Rs. 1.25 crore — and his pumpkin is to thank for it. Roy Story, of North Carolina, said he bought a scratch-off ticket using $10 someone gave him for a pumpkin he grew in his garden.
The player, a resident of Hertford, has a Halloween tradition of growing pumpkins and selling them, according to the North Carolina Education Lottery.
"I raise a few pumpkins every year and sell them. Someone gave me $10 for a pumpkin and I used that to buy the ticket,” Story said.
Unlike many lottery players who buy tickets as an afterthought at gas-station stores, Story visited a Sun Farms on US 17 South, in Elizabeth City, with a clear intention of buying a $5 Xtreme Cashword ticket.
The player said he enjoys crossword so much, he plays every game there is.
However, this time, Story was in luck, as he had won a prize. Except, thanks to not having his glasses on, he had no idea how much his winnings were.
"I thought it won $1,000,” Story recalled.
The winner’s prize turned out to be 150 times as much. Story said he’ll use his winnings to buy a new truck.
A similar misunderstanding happened when a Nebraska Lottery player thought he had won $20 on the lottery. Michael Henrichs, of Springfield, said he decided to get a scratch-off after seeing another customer buy it.
His $20 Titanium 20s ticket turned out to be a winner.
"At first I thought I'd won $20, but I kept scratching. Then maybe a $200 win. Then I saw the comma," Henrichs recalled.
30 years to the day he won the prize, Henrichs had bought the house in which he's living. Sweeter still, the winnings came just one day before his birthday.