Illinois man wins $1M just in time for his birthday
by Ben Hooper · UPIJuly 24 (UPI) -- An Illinois man received the "best birthday gift" when he won $1 million from a scratch-off lottery ticket just days before his special day.
The Kewanee resident, identified as Steve, told Illinois Lottery officials his lottery luck came just a few weeks after he narrowly missed out on a $10,000 prize.
"A few weeks ago, I was debating between two $5 tickets," he said. "I picked one that didn't win, but my coworker bought one of the other ones and won $10,000."
Steve made another attempt at the lottery at Beck's North in Kewanee, where he selected a $5 Onyx scratch-off and took it home to scratch later in the evening.
"I was watching TV and scratching the ticket with one of those vintage coins," he said. "I told myself, 'This will be my lucky token today' -- and it sure was."
The ticket, scratched off just days before Steve's birthday, turned out to be a $1 million winner.
"This win came just in time," he said. "I'll tell you what -- this is the best birthday gift I've ever gotten."
Steve said his plans for the prize money include building a new garage and buying a new car.
"But most importantly," he said, "I'm looking forward to spending more time in Arizona during the winter. My son lives there, so it'll be great to visit him more often."