Trip to their favorite restaurant turns into huge Kentucky Lottery win for Ohio couple
With a houseboat on Lake Cumberland, Steven and Wendy Green of Alexandria, Ohio, spend a fair amount of time in Kentucky, and a recent trip may prove unforgettable.
The couple was visiting earlier in September when they dined at their favorite restaurant, Wings and Rings in Somerset, and decided to play Keno, according to a Monday release from the Kentucky Lottery.
Keno is a drawing-based game that allows players to chose up to 10 spots per draw, numbered one through 80. Players select their own wager amount. With a top prize of $100,000, the game includes multipliers and “bull’s eyes” to increase winnings.
Steven usually uses the same 10 numbers to play — family birthdays and ages — but took a different approach on this ticket, he told lottery officials.
Playing a $5 ticket instead of $10, he and Wendy watched the last draw on his ticket Sept. 12, only to notice a few of the numbers match.
“Oh my god, we hit a lot of numbers on this one,” his wife said, according to the release.
After scanning the ticket, the bartender told them the prize was too large to pay out at the restaurant and they would have to instead visit Kentucky Lottery headquarters in Louisville.
The couple matched half of the ticket’s 20 numbers, producing a $100,000 prize.
“I kind of yelled $100,000,” he said. “I had goosebumps. It took about 10-15 minutes for it to sink in.”
After taxes, the couple was able to collect a check for $72,000, which they will use to help them retire in the future, they told lottery officials.
The restaurant that hosted them and sold them the ticket, Wings and Rings, will receive a $1,000 bonus.
The overall odds of winning any prize playing 10-spot Keno are 1 in 9.05, according to Kentucky Lottery, and winnings start at $2.
The Ohio couple isn’t the only big winner recently. The Kentucky Lottery also announced a Western Kentucky woman won $250,000 on a scratch-off purchased as part of a payday tradition.
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