A $150,000 Wheel of Fortune win saved the day for Winston-Salem’s Jackie Hallett after she won the game’s first top prize.

Hallett, a childcare worker for 23 years, was having “a bad day” when she stopped at the Pit Stop Food & Beverage on South Main Street in Winston-Salem.
But that would all change when she bought a new $5 Wheel of Fortune ticket.

She scratched the ticket at home and beat the odds of 1 in 1 million to win $150,000.

“I was sure it was a mistake,” Hallett said. “I couldn’t believe it. I still can’t believe it.”

Hallett got proof when she claimed her prize Tuesday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh. After required state and federal tax withholdings she took home $103,876. She plans to use the money to take a vacation in San Francisco.

“I feel better now,” Hallett said.

Wheel of Fortune launched this month with three top prizes of $150,000. Two remain unclaimed.

Ticket sales from games like Wheel of Fortune made it possible for the lottery to raise more than half a billion dollars for the state last year. For details on how more than $131.9 million in lottery funds has made a difference in Forsyth County, click on the “For Education” section of the lottery’s website.