After seeing his $10 scratch-off turn into a $1 million prize, Jay Mays of Selma said he opened the door to his house and just started running.
“When I saw I won, I threw it at my wife, took off out the door and started running down the street,” Mays said. “I was doing sprints running back and forth down the street.”
Mays, 55, bought his lucky Carolina Jackpot ticket from the 42 Express Food Mart and Grill on N.C. 42 East in Middlesex.
“Originally I just went to the store to get some doughnuts,” he said.
Mays said he had a feeling a big win would come his way soon.
“I’ve been getting close lately and I told my wife I was destined to win soon,” he said.
When Mays arrived at lottery headquarters Friday to collect his prize, he had a decision to make. He could choose to receive the prize as an annuity of $50,000 over 20 years or a lump sum of $600,000. He chose the lump-sum amount of $600,000 and, after required state and federal tax withholdings, took home $426,063.
Players get a second chance with their Carolina Jackpot tickets by scanning the tickets into their lottery accounts where they are automatically entered into a second-chance drawing. The drawing’s rolling jackpot continues to grow with every entry until the next drawing.
The first four drawings feature the rolling jackpot and the fifth drawing features a top prize of $200,000. The last day for entries in the fourth drawing is Oct. 30 and the draw date is Nov. 2.
The $10 Carolina Jackpot game debuted in June with five $1 million prizes. Two $1 million prizes remain to be claimed.
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