NCEL Weekly Wrap-Up

This week, the Education Lottery paid out more than $14 million overall in prizes as North Carolinians took their chances in an array of games from draw games to scratchers. Here’s a breakdown so you can see how much prizes were paid out for our favorite type of game since Thursday.


 

 Instant games: $10.5 million

 Carolina Pick 3: $1.8 million

 Carolina Pick 4: $989,600

 Carolina Cash 5: $574,484

 Powerball: $329,025

 Mega Millions: $153,609

The three biggest individual winners we met this week came in with prizes from Carolina Cash 5 or an instant game.

Ricky Watkins, a mechanic from Stoneville in Rockingham County, claimed the $244,086 jackpot for the June 30 Carolina Cash 5 drawing. He says he plans to save the money for retirement, but will buy a new pair of work boots.

Another Cash 5 jackpot winner, Alton Davis of New Bern, says he plans to buy a new car with the winnings from the Friday, July 13 drawing. Davis, an electrician, won $235,788.

Roger Smith, a paper product salesman from Burlington, stopped at the Eagles on Glenwood Avenue in Raleigh and tried his luck with the $100,000 Taxes Paid game. He scratched off the top prize and drove straight to lottery headquarters to collect it. Smith said he plans to retire in a year and the money will boost his retirement account.
 
In other lottery news, we launched two new instant games this week, a bingo-style game called Blue Diamond Bingo and 7-11-21. Blue Diamond Bingo is a $3 game with five top prizes of $50,000 and 7-11-21 is a $2 game with six top prizes of $20,000.
 
Finally, Carolina Pick 3 players have a one in three chance of seeing the Green Ball get drawn tonight, Friday, July 20, to add a boost to their winnings. In the evening drawing, the draw machine has only two white balls and the green ball left in the chamber. The Green Ball Bonus Draw promotion will end on July 28.
 
Good luck to all in the next week.