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Forsyth County man enjoys $1 million second-chance win

January 2, 2026 Posted by NC Lottery at 2:47 PM
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Anthony Funchess of Pfafftown tried his luck in a second-chance drawing and won the $1 million top prize.

Funchess found out he won his big prize in the $10 Million Spectacular Second Chance drawing on Dec. 3 when he got a phone call from the lottery. There were more than 1.2 million total entries in the drawing.

Players got a second chance with their $10 Million Spectacular scratch-offs by scanning them into their lottery accounts where they were automatically entered into the drawing. In addition to the $1 million top prize, the drawing had one prize of $500,000 and 10 $50,000 winners.

When Funchess arrived at lottery headquarters Friday, 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 of $600,000 and, after required state and federal tax withholdings, took home $432,060.


5 COMMENTS

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1/05/2026 04:19 - Brian T.

A Funchess from the same town won $100,000 last year on a scratch off ticket. Amazing!

1/05/2026 03:52 - Angela A.

Well congrats! I know I wasted a lot of money on these tickets never seen a $500 WIN on a ticket designed for the best odds to WIN $500. I will say I will WIN this month as I am not giving the NCEL one cent! (NO Digital games, NO scratch tickets, and NO draw games for me tried of giving my hard earned money away for now!) So I will be the BIG WINNER in January! One other thought you all always say larger populated areas WIN more, because they play more....I don't believe that, because you are assuming everyone is playing. They could be spending $1 and people in less populated area is spending $100 which would equal things out, but that is not the case when it comes to the WIN.

1/05/2026 03:00 - John D.

I saw that too Brian T. they already know where the wins are going

1/04/2026 11:07 - Brian T.

Thank you NCEL for your empty response to my comment below. It really does show the depth at which you operate. Your marketing entices players with false hope for your rigged games. And then you have the audacity to push your Playsmart campaign under the guise of legitimacy. It wouldn't matter but the states mandated this type of behavior. It's unfortunate as it will lead to civil unrest. You folks who know only have yourselves to thank for creating the situation. Try reading history sometime instead of checking your bank account.

1/04/2026 08:12 - Brian T.

NCEL, is this article a test to see if folks are paying attention or to confirm the notion that these games and drawings are rigged? Shame on you for allowing more than one draw per player account on any of your rigged drawings in order to sell more tickets. Good luck to us all.NC Lottery
Hi Brian, I wanted to share a little info about Second Chance drawings. Every ticket that is eligible for Second Chance drawings can be scanned into a player's Lucke Rewards account and entered into the linked Second Chance drawing. A player can scan as many tickets as they like and receive multiple entries into any qualifying Second Chance drawings. That's part of the benefit of playing a scratch-off with a Second Chance opportunity!

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