A 61-year-old Michigan woman thought her $30 scratch-off ticket had won $5,000, but a phone scan revealed a $2 million prize; she chose about $1.3 million in cash and plans to buy homes in Michigan and Florida

An Ingham County woman went from celebrating what she thought was a modest lottery win to discovering she had won a life-changing $2 million (£1.54 million) jackpot after scanning her ticket. The 61-year-old woman, who chose to remain anonymous, bought her winning $30 scratch-off ticket for the Michigan Lottery’s $2,000,000 Cashword instant game at the Holt Express convenience store at 2196 West Delhi Avenue in Holt. This was confirmed in an official release published on the Michigan Lottery Connect platform. When she first checked her ticket, she thought she had won a good amount of money. However, the actual prize was much larger than she had expected.

Misread ticket reveals million-dollar prize

“I scratched off my ticket and thought I won $5,000,” the player told Michigan Lottery officials when she claimed her prize. “I scanned it on the lottery app to double check, and when $2 million popped up on the screen, I was in utter shock. My husband and I couldn’t believe it.” The winner recently visited Michigan Lottery headquarters in Lansing to collect her prize. She had two options: receive the full $2 million through yearly payments or take a smaller amount in one payment. She chose the one-time cash payment of approximately $1.3 million, local news outlet WILX-TV reported. The $1.3 million lump-sum payment reflects the state and federal taxes that are withheld from large lottery prizes in the United States.

Real estate plans in two states

Now that she has secured her winnings, the woman already has plans for how to spend the money. “I plan to use my winnings to buy a home in Michigan, a home in Florida, and then save the rest,” she said during her interview with lottery officials. Her plan to spend time in both Michigan and Florida follows a common choice among Midwestern residents known as “snowbirds.” Many people in this group spend the winter months in warmer southern states while keeping a home near their families in the Midwest.

Local store handles winning sale

The Holt Express store that sold the winning ticket is in Ingham County, about 10 miles south of downtown Lansing. In Michigan, local stores that sell tickets worth top lottery prizes usually receive an extra commission from the state lottery commission for selling a winning jackpot ticket. According to the Michigan Lottery, the $2,000,000 Cashword game launched in August 2024. Each ticket costs $30 and gives players a chance to win prizes ranging from $30 to the top jackpot of $2 million. Since the game launched, players have won more than $22 million in prizes. Each ticket includes several crossword-style word puzzles. Players can win cash prizes by completing specific word combinations.Michigan Lottery records show that the $2,000,000 Cashword scratch-off remains one of the state’s most popular $30 lottery ticket options. Several top prizes have been won at stores across Michigan’s Lower Peninsula since the game first launched. For the 61-year-old winner, scanning her ticket a second time with the mobile app made all the difference. What she first believed was a $5,000 win turned out to be a life-changing amount of money. Her winnings will allow her to buy two homes and put a large part of the remaining money into long-term savings.