LANSING, Mich. – A Wayne County man has two million reasons to be thankful after he scratched off a $2 million winning Classic Black instant game ticket on Thanksgiving Day.
The lucky player, who chose to remain anonymous, bought the winning ticket at the Westland Food Store, located at 1690 South Venoy Road in Westland.
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“I won $2,500 playing Classic Black a few months ago and I’ve stuck with it ever since,” said the 67-year-old player. “When I scratched the ticket off and saw I matched the ‘$2MIL’ symbol I couldn’t believe it.
“I said to my wife: ‘You’re not going to believe this.’ and showed her the ticket. Holding the winning ticket makes me feel like I’m in a dream.”
The lucky player recently visited Lottery headquarters to claim the big prize. He chose to receive his winnings as a one-time lump sum payment of about $1.3 million, rather than annuity payments for the full amount.
He plans to share some of his winnings with his family, donate to charities, buy a new home, and then save the remainder.
“I keep pinching myself expecting to wake up and find out this is a dream, but now that I’m holding the check it all feels real,” the player said.
Players have won more than $61 million playing Classic Black, which launched in March 2018. Each $20 ticket offers players a chance to win prizes ranging from $20 up to $2 million. More than $37 million in prizes remain, including one $2 million top prize, 10 $10,000 prizes, 40 $5,000 prizes, and 81 $2,500 prizes.
Lottery instant games may be purchased at 10,500 retailers across the state.
In 2018, Lottery players won more than $1 billion playing instant games.