The winning ticket, purchased after a round of golf, was worth seven figures – but the lucky lottery player had to give up over $327,000 immediately due to a game restriction.
The anonymous player, who goes by the pseudonym “19th Hole” in honor of his love of golf, was on his way to play a round at Nutters Crossing Golf Club when he decided to purchase a lottery ticket, according to Maryland Lottery officials.
He paid $20 for a $1 Million Royale scratch-off ticket at the nearby Express Lane convenience store, located at 4912 Snow Hill Road in Salisbury, Maryland, approximately 105 miles from Baltimore.
The player scratched the ticket and discovered it was not a winner.
After playing a round at the golf club, he decided to try his luck once more and purchased a second ticket from Express Lane, which turned out to be worth $1 million.
However, the player stated that he was confused rather than excited about his win.
When he scanned the QR code on the ticket at the convenience store, the screen read $1 million, but the word “million” was also part of the lottery game’s name.
“19th Hole” brought his ticket to the parking lot to scan it again using the Maryland Lottery app, which left him slightly puzzled.
The message on his phone read “Not a winner” – but that was because the player had accidentally scanned the first ticket he purchased.
When the Maryland man scanned the correct ticket, the app confirmed the player’s winnings.
He returned to the convenience store to demonstrate his luck to the clerk, who was stunned.
A few seconds after the player announced his victory, he received a phone call from his wife, who was on break at work.
“He was stuttering pretty good,” she told lottery officials.
After her husband told her about his $1 million fortune, she was shocked and told him several times, “Shut up!”
The big win came after years of her husband playing lottery games.
Lucky lottery numbers – fact or fiction?
The U.S. Sun spoke exclusively with professor of mathematics at Davidson College, Tim Chartier, who revealed the truth behind lucky numbers.
Scooping up a jackpot prize in a lottery game such as Powerball or Mega Millions involves correctly guessing a series of numbers.
Many players swear by certain numbers, sticking with digits such as birthdays, anniversaries, or ages – but do these numbers statistically carry the luck that players believe they do?
According to Chartier, they do.
“I think a number is lucky if you have fun playing it and it improves your experience of winning,” he said.
“The big lotteries are, statistically speaking, a chance to dream of being a multi-millionaire or even billionaire. If playing a certain number heightens that experience, then yes!”
However, the lottery expert clarified that aside from the feel-good implications of playing your “lucky numbers,” no number is truly lucky when it comes to the lottery.
“All numbers are equally likely,” said Chartier.
He explained that even though all numbers are equally likely, some may seem to appear more often.
For example, rolling a six-sided die six times does not guarantee that you will roll each number exactly once.
He is “absolutely” a regular scratch-off player, she stated, with the player confirming that he has been purchasing lottery tickets “since forever.”
“I have been more excited about a $1,000 win. “This one was more of a shock,” the winner said when he claimed his prize on May 1.
“19th Hole” intends to invest his prize money, while his wife is considering early retirement.
MONEY MADNESS
$1 Million Royale is a $20 scratch-off ticket that offers 32 chances to win and a $1 million grand prize.
The game went on sale in July 2023, with seven top prizes up for grabs.
“19th Hole” was the fourth Maryland player to score one, with three of the $1 million prizes unclaimed as of May 1.
While the chance of winning any prize in the game is one in 3.04, “19th Hole” had to overcome far more difficult odds to secure his million-dollar win.
Although the prize was advertised as $1 million, the Maryland man did not receive the full amount.
According to lottery rules, for prizes exceeding $5,000, federal taxes are withheld at 24% and Maryland state taxes at 8.75%.
In this case, “19th Hole” instantly lost $240,000 in federal taxes and $87,500 in state taxes, for a total of $327,500.
Remember to gamble responsibly
A responsible gambler is someone who:
- Establishes time and monetary limits before playingÂ
- Only gambles with money they can afford to lose
- Never chase their losses
- Doesn’t gamble if they’re upset, angry, or depressed
If you or someone you know is struggling with gambling addiction, contact the National Gambling Helpline at 1-800-522-4700 or go to the National Council on Problem Gambling website.
Check out these other lucky lottery players who won big.
A much-anticipated Mega Millions winner finally claimed their $349 million jackpot, but the “blessed” winner was forced to give away $101.1 million.
Plus, Powerball winner Linda Grizzle broke her silence after winning $167.3 million, but she risks losing half of her prize right away.
