Richard Hayes of Elkin is the first person to win a top prize playing the new $200,000 Taxes Paid scratch-off game.
He bought the $5 ticket at Ashley Farms on Austin-Traphill Road in Elkin.
A player who wins a top prize in this game gets a check for the top prize amount with the taxes already paid. The lottery pays the minimum mandatory required federal and state tax withholding as part of the top prizes awarded in the game. The actual top prize Hayes claimed on Thursday was $287,766. He took home $200,001.
$200,000 Taxes Paid launched earlier this month with five top prizes. Four top prizes remain.
Ticket sales from games like $200,000 Taxes Paid made it possible for the lottery to raise more than $634 million for the state last year. For details on how lottery funds have made a difference in Surry County, click on the “For Education” section of the lottery’s website.