Richard Mayhew of Monroe can get his dream car after he won a $1 million lottery prize.
“I’m going to get a 1970 Pontiac GTO,” Mayhew said. “It was the first car I owned, and how I met my girlfriend.”
Mayhew was on his way to get pizza when he stopped at the Kangaroo Express on Old Charlotte Highway in Monroe and got a Big Money Super Ticket.
“It was the last ticket on the roll,” Mayhew said. “When I scratched it I was in shock. I think I looked at it for about an hour.”
Mayhew claimed his prize Tuesday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh. He had the choice of taking an annuity that has 20 payments of $50,000 a year or a lump sum of $600,000. He chose the lump sum. After required state and federal tax withholdings, he took home $417,009.
The $10 game launched earlier this month. Mayhew is the first player to win a $1 million top prize. Three top prizes remain.
Ticket sales from instant games like the Big Money Super Ticket make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $600 million a year for the state. For details on how lottery funds have made a difference in all of North Carolina’s 100 counties, click on the “For Education” section of the lottery’s website.