All a Lansing man could think was: “You’re kidding me!” after he won $1 million playing the Michigan Lottery’s Millionaire Maker instant game.
The lucky player, who chose to remain anonymous, bought his winning ticket at the Meijer, located at 6200 South Pennsylvania in Lansing.
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“I’d won a little playing Lotto 47, so I used my winnings to buy a couple of instant tickets out of the vending machine at Meijer,” said the 65-year-old player. “I scratched the ticket when I got out to my truck and I really did think it was a joke until I scanned it in the Lottery app and that verified it was a big winner.
“I called my wife, and she thought I was full of it. She wouldn’t believe me until I sent her a picture of the ticket!”
The player recently visited Lottery headquarters to claim his prize. He chose to receive his prize as a one-time lump sum payment of about $634,000, rather than annuity payments for the full amount. With his winnings, he plans to give his retirement account a boost.
“Winning is overwhelming. It gives me and my wife the ability to relax and it guarantees we will have a comfortable retirement,” the player said.
Players have won more than $9 million playing Millionaire Maker which launched this month. Each $20 ticket offers players a chance to win prizes ranging from $40 up to $1 million. More than $88 million in prizes remain, including 10 $1 million top prizes and 58 $5,000 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.