Larry Clegg’s favorite set of Cash 5 numbers came to him in a dream. When the numbers 1, 22, 26, 27, and 33 were drawn on Tuesday night, his dream became a reality. Clegg won half of the $236,360 Carolina Cash 5 jackpot.
“It was a dream some years back, and I stayed with it,” Clegg explained. “I came close and never hit it - until last night.”
Clegg said he checked the numbers on the lottery’s website early Wednesday morning and headed to Raleigh to collect his prize money. He was undecided about how he would use his after-tax winnings of $80,364.
The claim marks the second time good luck has led to a big lottery win for Clegg. Back in 2007, he won $50,000 playing a $2 instant game called Lightning Strikes. Clegg said he used his winnings to make car and mortgage payments, as well as take a trip to the beach.
Clegg, who lives in Biscoe, purchased his winning Carolina Cash 5 ticket at the Quik Chek on North Main Street in Troy. His ticket was one of two that matched all five numbers in Tuesday’s drawing. The other ticket, also worth $118,180, was sold at the Mountain Energy on South Main Street in Waynesville in Haywood County.
Ticket sales for games such as Carolina Cash 5 have enabled the lottery to raise more than $2.58 billion for education initiatives statewide. Since the lottery began through June 30, 2012, Montgomery County education programs received more than $8.5 million in lottery funds. By law, those funds pay for teachers’ salaries in grades K-3, school construction, prekindergarten programs for at-risk four-year-olds, and need-based college scholarships and financial aid.
A Cash 5 promotion that started Sept. 9 offers players five extra chances to win as much as $50,000. The lottery will hold five Cash 5 Bonus Bucks drawings between now and next summer. In each drawing, five prizes will be awarded: One $50,000 grand prize, one $5,000 prize, and three $1,000 prizes. The first Bonus Bucks drawing will be held on Nov. 14. More details on the promotion are available on the lottery’s official website.