James Moade of Cary is the fourth Lucky for Life player in North Carolina to win the top prize of $1,000 A Day for Life.
Moade purchased his winning $2 ticket for the Nov. 9 drawing at the Wegmans Food Market on Davis Drive in Morrisville.
His $2 ticket matched the numbers on all five white balls and the gold Lucky Ball number to beat odds of 1 in 30.8 million.
Moade claimed his prize Tuesday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh.
Winners of the Lucky for Life top prize can choose to take their prize as an annuity of $365,000 a year guaranteed for the rest of the winner’s life, or take a lump sum of $5.75 million. Moade chose the annuity and took home his first payment of $257,531 after required federal and state tax withholdings.
Lucky for Life tickets cost $2 and offers players 10 ways to win a prize. Drawings are held on Monday and Thursday nights.
Ticket sales from draw games make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $725 million per year for education. For details on how lottery funds have helped all of North Carolina’s 100 counties, click on the “Impact” section of the lottery’s website.