Second chances are something special. They bring excitement, surprise, sometimes tears, and a renewed sense of possibility.
Here at the lottery, some of our scratch-off games feature second-chance drawings. Players may win instantly — but if not, all they have to do is to enter that ticket into the game’s second-chance drawings, at no additional cost.
Sometimes, we get to be the lucky folks who surprise players with the news of their big wins!
Read on to hear about five times we got to surprise second-chance winners:
Wendy Johnson of Charlotte said she wanted to scream when she got a phone call from the lottery telling her she won $1 million. “Oh my God! You’re kidding me. You’re kidding,” Johnson said. “My heart’s beating so fast. I have tears streaming down my face I’m so happy. Oh my gosh. I ‘m so happy I want to scream!” Her entry was chosen from 983,012 entries in the August 2019 $300,000,000 Supreme Riches Second-Chance Drawing Promotion. “I never thought I’d win but oh I was praying,” Johnson said. The grandmother of two said she planned to use the money to buy a new house and take care of her children and grandchildren.
In July of 2017, adventure caught up to a lucky Wilmington lottery player. Jeff Gould went to the lottery’s Wilmington office to claim a prize, not knowing that he had won the Jeep® brand ticket second-chance drawing. Blindfolded, Gould went to the parking lot. When the blindfold came off, he saw a line-up of a 2017 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon, Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited, and a Jeep Renegade Trailhawk. The handyman, most interested in the Grand Cherokee, said the win came at the perfect time. “The funny thing is, I was just talking to my wife about switching out my work truck for an SUV when I retire in a couple of years,” Gould said. “This really is a dream come true.”
Jasmine Maloy of Charlotte was able to experience her first Panthers game in style after she won a luxury suite for 12 for the 2019 season. The health insurance worker won the prize after she entered a Carolina Panthers scratch-off ticket into the lottery’s second-chance drawing. Maloy found out she won the grand prize when the lottery invited her to the Bank of America Stadium. When Maloy and her fiancé entered the suite, they were greeted by cheering TopCats and Sir Purr who rushed to present her with a giant key. After a round of high fives and hugs, he motioned her to look out the window where she saw the video messaging board in the stadium lit up with her name. “Oh my God! This is incredible,” Maloy said when she looked out at the stadium. “I can’t believe I get to be part of this. It means so much to me to win.” As a final surprise, the lottery sent Maloy on a $300 shopping spree at the Panthers team store. “I didn’t expect any of this,” Maloy said. “This is so surreal.”
A May 2017 Extreme Millions Second-Chance drawing turned Jesse Callahan of Greensboro’s dreams into reality. “Everybody loves the arts,” Callahan said. “But they don’t want to support them. Now I can.” He planned to work on his art and music. Callahan’s entry was chosen from 1,035,178. When he found out he won, Callahan couldn’t believe it. “That is too cool. Oh my God!” He hoped to develop a self-improvement program to help people make the most of their time and also planned to visit South Korea.
Bryan McDaniel of Smithfield and Tony Hedgepeth of Dunn are co-workers and friends, and in January 2019, they became the first players to win $1 million in the Colossal Cash Second-Chance Drawing Promotion. When they walked into lottery headquarters, they were greeted by cheers and confetti. After some tears and a round of hugs, they expressed their disbelief. “We talked about what it would be like to win,” McDaniel said. “We never thought we actually would.” The forklift repairmen made it a tradition to play the lottery together. “I was joking with Tony that it never felt so good to be a loser in my life,” McDaniel said. “This is incredible that we won the second-chance drawing!”
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How would I know if I've won I got a text and it seems to bring me here? Thank you.
Wanda Starnes