Out of gas, Kentucky man stops to fuel up and leaves with 7-figure scratch-off ticket
When Michael Schlemmer ran out of gas and coasted to a food mart to fill his tank, he didn’t expect to leave with a scratch-off ticket worth $1 million.
“I had $40 bucks on me and bought $20 worth of gas and bought a ticket,” Schlemmer told Kentucky Lottery officials, according to a Tuesday release from the organization.
Schlemmer purchased a $1,000,000 Luck scratch-off ticket from Convenient Food Mart in Corbin recently, the lottery said. The odds of winning anything on the game are 1 in 3.57, with prizes ranging from $20 to the $1 million top prize.
When he scratched off the ticket and saw the automatic signal indicating he won $1 million, Schlemmer said he didn’t know what to think.
“Nothing went through my mind,” Schlemmer said. “I just got up and went back in the store and showed it to them [the store clerks]. Until I get the check in my hand, I don’t believe it.”
Schlemmer collected the cash prize of $616,330 after taxes Thursday at Kentucky Lottery headquarters. He said he’s wanting to use some of the money to purchase a car and put the rest in the bank.
Convenient Food Mart gets $8,620 for selling Schlemmer the winning ticket.
If you or someone you know has a problem with gambling, help is available at 1-800-522-4700.
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