Amy Rowland may be the luckiest lottery player living in China Grove. Nearly three months after winning $250,000 playing Mega Millions in October, she scratched off a $1 million prize in the lottery’s $120 Million Cash game.
“It didn’t feel real,” Rowland said of her latest win. “It was just as surprising as the last time.”
Rowland beat long odds to win both prizes. In October, she matched five white balls on her Mega Millions ticket, beating odds of 1 in 3.9 million. The odds of winning a $1 million prize in the $120 Million Cash game began at 1 in 1.3 million.
Players who win $1 million in the $120 Million Cash game can elect to receive annual payments of $50,000 for 20 years or take a lump sum cash option of $600,000. Rowland chose the cash option and received a check for $415,206 after state and federal taxes were withheld.
“I’m going to take my grandkids on a cruise,” Rowland said as she collected her winnings on Friday. She purchased her lucky $20 ticket at the Food Lion on North Cannon Boulevard in Kannapolis. Three $3 million top prizes, four $1 million prizes and four $100,000 prizes remain to be claimed in the $120 Million Cash game.
As of September 2013, the lottery has raised more than $3 billion to support education programs.
To see how more than $38.5 million in lottery dollars have made a difference in Rowan County, go to the Where the Money Goes webpage at http://www.nc-educationlottery.org/beneficiary.aspx.