Lee County couple win first $2 million prize in new game

August 29, 2023 Posted by NC Lottery at 2:18 PM

Debra and John Whitaker of Cameron tried their luck on a $20 lottery ticket and won the first $2 million prize in a new scratch-off game.

They bought their lucky Big Cash Payout ticket from the Food Lion on Monroe Street in Carthage.

When they arrived at lottery headquarters Tuesday to collect their prize, they had a decision to make. They could choose to receive the prize as an annuity of $100,000 over 20 years or a lump sum of $1.2 million. They chose to split the lump-sum amount of $1.2 million. They both received $600,000 and, after required state and federal tax withholdings, they each took home $427,503.

Big Cash Payout debuted last month with four $2 million prizes and eight $100,000 prizes. Three $2 million prizes and seven $100,000 prizes remain to be claimed.

16 COMMENTS

12/16/2023 10:23 - Sherry W.

I have not received my winnings yet since December 6 and have sent documents 3 times. Should I make a complaint?NC Lottery
Hi, Sherry! We are so sorry for the delay and any inconvenience, and would love to look into this further and see what's causing this delay. Please reach out to https://nclottery.com/Help and our team can look into the status of your withdrawal request and provide more info and assistance on this.

9/07/2023 12:27 - Jowanna M.

N.C.Education lottery keeps bringing a lot of repeats out. There are numbers that has not come out all year in pick 3 and pick 4. yet they keep coming up with numbers that has been out 2 or more time this year or recently. just wondering why this is.NC Lottery
Hi, Jowanna! Our team has strict security procedures in place to ensure that every set of numbers has the exact same chance of being drawn in every drawing. This includes using a randomly selected ball machine and randomly selected ball set during each different drawing. Every combination has a 1 in 1,000 chance of being drawn in each and every Pick 3 drawing, and 1 in 10,000 for every Pick 4 drawing. In games where you can choose numbers from 0-9, it’s no surprise that we see similar patterns come up every so often.

9/02/2023 09:24 - Louis S.

Congratulations on your winning., that let's me know I'm next. ??

9/01/2023 02:35 - Darlene E.

Congrats on the BIG WIN!!!

8/31/2023 02:46 - Charles H.

I have shopped at that Food Lion many times and the best I ever done was $100. I don't think it's fair for them to win that much and me not. I wish I could congratulate them, but I can't and feel good about it. They took something that I feel was rightfully mine. I just hope they're generous and share with those in need.

8/30/2023 05:00 - Joe S.

Congrats from Charlotte! :)

8/30/2023 12:40 - Keisha M.

Why is this “verification process” so long & drawn out I’ve sent 4 pieces of identification for $1540 pick 3 winnings on august 24 & haven’t heard anything this is crazy

8/30/2023 06:56 - James K.

Good Morning.My question is about the Double play in the cash 5 game. If I play multiple lines of numbers and from each line a number or numbers is in the Double Play selection do they count?NC Lottery
Hey, James! Double Play applies to one selection of numbers from a single Cash 5 ticket - those numbers are then entered into the Double Play drawing. The odds and prize payouts for Double Play can be found on our site here: https://nclottery.com/cash5-how-to-play.

8/30/2023 05:23 - Keisha M.

I won on the pick 3 8/24/23 I’ve provide 4 pieces of identification my license passport my ss card & my visa debit why does this take almost a week I haven’t received anything

8/30/2023 05:16 - Keisha M.

HELLO I HAD 4 WINNING PICK 3 TICKETS ONLINE 8/24/23 IVE REQUESTED A WITHDRAWAL for $1540 & I haven’t received NOTHING !!! I UPLOADED MY DOCUMENTS SEVERAL TIMES SINCE THAT DAY & I STILL HAVENT GOTTEN MY WINNINGS DEPOSITED EVERYTIME I ONLINE NO ONE IS GIVING ME A CLEAR ANSWER PLEASE HELP ME GET MY WINNINGS THE HOLIDAY IS APPROACHING !NC Lottery
Hi, Keisha! We apologize for the inconvenience. Our team works to review the identity verification documents in a timely manner and process withdrawal requests as soon as possible. If you reach out to https://nclottery.com/Help, our Online Support folks may be able to update you on the status of your request.

8/29/2023 10:46 - Vivian p.

Congratulations to the both of you. May you both enjoy your winnings. Have fun

8/29/2023 08:46 - Kathy D.

Why is NCEL so behind in paying out online winnings. I won on 8/16. Calling customer Service you get the same scripted answer. Just release the money already. Please.NC Lottery
We're so sorry about that, Kathy! We work to complete withdrawal requests on our end as soon as possible and we apologize for any inconvenience caused by this delay.

8/29/2023 07:36 - MICHAEL B.

Congratulations

8/29/2023 04:55 - Brian C.

Congratulations, not a tax accountant. Question I have splitting the ticket did they incur more taxes???NC Lottery
Hi there, Brian! We only withhold the minimum required amount for taxes - 4.75% for NC and 24% for Federal. So splitting the prize would incur the same amount of taxes up front as it would if they claimed together. However, depending on how they file their taxes, their own individual tax obligations may be different come tax season. We hope this helps to answer your question!

8/29/2023 03:21 - Douglas H.

Congratulations!! Dear NCEL. I would like to find out when the pick four payout amounts changed it used to be a $.50 ticket played was a $200 win and a $1 play was a $400 win. Today I scanned my pick four winner that I played for a dollar ANY (0824) and it shows a $200 win. Did I miss something on the payout changing? Or am I thinking of a totally different game? Thank you.:-)NC Lottery
Hi, Douglas! It depends on how many different numbers you play - if you have 4 different digits, the payout for a $1 Any win is $200. If it's 3 different numbers and 1 repeat number (i.e. 0822), the payout would be $400. You can see the payout structure outlined here: https://nclottery.com/pick4-how-to-play. Hope this helps to clarify!

8/29/2023 02:44 - Charles G.

All the big winning tickets are in certain small towns ??NC Lottery
Hi, Charles! We wanted to let you know we don’t know where the winning tickets will be and it is no easier to win the lottery in once place over another. No matter where you live or where you play, you have the same chance to beat the odds as anyone else - it just takes a whole lot of luck!

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Lee County couple win first $2 million prize in new game

August 29, 2023 Posted by NC Lottery at 2:18 PM

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