John McNeill of Shannon tried his luck on a $2 Lucky for Life ticket and won a $25,000 a year for life prize.

McNeill bought his lucky ticket from One Stop on East 4th Avenue in Red Springs. He won his prize by matching all five white balls in Wednesday’s drawing. The odds of winning that prize are 1 in 1.8 million.

He claimed his prize at lottery headquarters and had the choice of receiving $25,000 a year for the rest of his life or a $390,000 lump sum. He chose the $390,000 lump sum and, after required state and federal tax withholdings, took home $279,826.

Lucky for Life is one of six lottery games in North Carolina where players have the option of buying their tickets through a retail location or Online Play.

The state provided $59.7 million in grants, using money raised by the lottery, to help Robeson County build a new career and technology high school. For details on other ways Robeson County benefits from lottery funds, visit www.nclottery.com and click on the “Impact” section.