RALEIGH – Raleigh residents Clarence and Kristine Kyne have enjoyed playing lottery games since 2006 when it was first introduced in North Carolina. They have always purchased their tickets from Jim’s Mini Mart on Watkins Road in Raleigh, a small convenience store near their home, hoping that their consistent playing in one location would eventually pay off. On Friday, their consistency was rewarded as they matched all five white balls but not the Mega Ball on their Mega Millions ticket, winning a $250,000 prize. The couple learned of their win when Clarence returned home from golfing and turned on the television to check his numbers.

“I thought they were rotten numbers when I looked at them,” said Clarence of his Quick-Picked ticket. “It doesn’t matter to the computer, I guess. Numbers are numbers and these just got lucky.”

“It’s exciting,” said Kristine. “It feels great to win. We buy tickets every Tuesday and Friday, so we were always hoping for this. You can’t win if you don’t play.”

The recently-married couple plan to use their winnings, worth $170,000 after taxes, to pay bills, save for the future, take a golf vacation and travel to Atlantic City with friends.

“2011 has been a pretty good year so far,” said Kristine as she collected the prize. “It’s been a great day.”

“This will put us on the right track,” Clarence added.

From March 30, 2006 through June 30, 2010, Wake County players have won more than $225.3 million in lottery prizes and county retailers have earned more than $28.7 million in commissions on ticket sales.

During the same time period, Wake County education programs have received more than $108 million in lottery funds. By law, those funds benefit teacher salaries, school construction, need-based college scholarships and prekindergarten programs.

To date, the N.C. Education Lottery has raised more than $2 billion for the education initiatives it serves statewide.