Retired firefighter will continue to play as jackpot rolls to $400 million
The Powerball jackpot continues to grow but many players, including a Windsor Mill man, are picking up big second- and third-tier prizes along the way. He won a $150,000 prize in the May 31 drawing.
The lucky player knew he won when he matched four of the five numbers drawn along with the Powerball, but he and his wife didn’t realize his prize tripled with the addition of his 3X Power Play multiplier.
“I thought I won $25,000. I was shocked when I learned it was $150,000,” the big winner said.
The Baltimore County man plays Powerball twice a week and allows the terminal to pick his digits at random. His wife said she checks her husband’s tickets every few weeks and noticed that he had the numbers 4, 54, 61 and 62 and the Powerball number of 14 for the May 31 drawing. He just missed winning the $239 million jackpot by one number!
His wife said they were “happy and blessed” with the win. “I knew we won something, but I couldn’t believe it was that much money. We had no idea,” she said.
The retired firefighter said he is undecided on how he will spend the prize. He does plan to continue his tradition of playing Powerball twice a week. “Someone contributed to my win so I will contribute to someone else’s win,” he said.
The 83-year-old purchased his ticket at Billiard Plus, located at 8140 Liberty Road in Baltimore.
The Powerball drawing continues to rise. Tonight’s jackpot has rolled to an estimated annuity of $400 million with an estimated cash value of $207.1 million.
