News writer; Opinion columnist
What's the most you've ever won from a scratch-off ticket? A few hundred bucks? Another free ticket? Probably not much more than what you spent to buy it.
But if you're one of the lucky winners listed below, then the answer is a life-changing amount of money. These were some of the biggest scratcher jackpot winners of the past couple of years.
Set for Life!
California airport employee Durwin Hickman went from being a skycap to a jet setter after buying a scratch-off ticket on his lunch break.
While enjoying his time off from picking up other people's luggage, he picked up a $30 Set for Life scratcher at his local liquor store. After revealing the word LIFE on his ticket, he knew he had won the massive $20 million jackpot.
"It was the biggest rush I have had in my life," Hickman told the California Lottery. He also said he plans to buy his wife a house with his winnings.
Presumably, he'll also spend more time flying on planes than loading them with luggage.
The liquor store where he bought the ticket, L&M Liquor in Hayward, California, will receive a $100,000 bonus for selling the winning ticket.
Clerk FTW!
Sometimes, asking a stranger for advice can be a good idea if you're struggling with a decision. For scratcher player Brent Young, that advice was worth $10 million.
Young couldn't decide which ticket to buy at Prince Food & Gas in Vasilia, California, so he asked the Store Clerk to choose for him.
The Clerk selected a $30 California 200X Game, and Young uncovered the $10,000,000 symbol, meaning he had won the top prize. Luck was on his side that night because he didn't usually buy his tickets at the gas station.
"I had no choice but to go to Prince's. My usual stop was closed. If it had been open, none of this probably would have happened," Young told ABC 7 Eyewitness News.
Young selected the lump sum payout and collected a check for $5.8 million.
Not only did Young take home the big prize, but the Clerk's priceless advice was worth a $50,000 bonus for selling the winning ticket.
Double Trouble
Most scratch-off players spend their lives dreaming of winning the big prize. For Juan Hernandez of Uniondale, New York, that dream came true twice when he won the New York Lottery's $10 million deluxe scratch-off game.
Players have to match one of their 25 numbers to the game’s ten winning numbers. Uncovering a 50X symbol multiplies the prizes fifty times.
The odds of winning the $10 million Deluxe was 1 in 3.52 million, but what makes this win even more remarkable is that he had won the exact same amount three years ago by cashing in a $350 million Cash Spectacular scratch-off ticket for $10 million.
For his most recent win, Hernandez chose the lump sum payout option, and after the required withholdings, he collected a check for $6.5 million.
While there’s no word on whether Hernandez will keep playing scratchers after his second big win, he must at least be curious if the third time's the charm.
