News writer
It was a lucky day for Pennsylvania on St. Patrick's Day, March 17, as two winners landed $1 million jackpots in separate lotteries: the Powerball and the Pennsylvania Lottery Cash 5 with Quick Cash.
The winning details
The Cash 5 winner bought their ticket at Ennie Inc. in Philadelphia, matching all five balls, 7-10-18-32-33. To play Pennsylvania Lottery Cash 5 with Quick Cash, players choose five numbers from 1 to 43 and must match all five numbers to win the jackpot. Players can win smaller prizes if they match fewer balls.
The Powerball winner purchased their ticket at a Wawa in Woodlyn, Pennsylvania, matching white balls, 11-18-23-38-60, though not the red Powerball.
Without add-ons such as Power Play or Double Play, tickets in both lotteries cost $2 apiece.
The ticketholders won $1 million each.
Lucky St. Patrick's Day?
While there is no secret to winning the lottery, many associate St. Patrick's Day with luck.
The holiday began as a celebration of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, who is credited for bringing Christianity to the nation in the 5th century.
More recently, St. Patrick's Day has become a general celebration of Irish culture, embracing folk symbols of good fortune, including four-leaf clovers, leprechauns, and green clothing. The "luck of the Irish" is a common phrase that was likely borne out of 19th-century mining culture, where Irish people were successful at finding valuable ores. However, many believe the phrase was pejorative, implying that Irish people were just lucky rather than intelligent or skilled. Nowadays, the phrase is used in a celebratory, whimsical fashion.
How to claim the prizes
Currently, the $1 million winners are not known - the prizes must be claimed and validated first.
Anyone holding a jackpot-winning Cash 5 with Quick Cash ticket should contact the nearest Pennsylvania Lottery office or call 1-800-692-7481. If the purchase was made online, the winnings automatically appear in a player's account once the claim is processed.
Players are advised to check their tickets every time and to keep their tickets in a safe place where they won't get lost. For Cash 5 and Powerball, winners have one year to claim their $1 million prize before they expire. Winners are instructed to sign their lottery tickets immediately.
A lucky week
The $1 million tickets are only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Pennsylvania winners this week.
More than 26,000 other Cash 5 with Quick Cash tickets won prizes in the March 17 drawing. Lower-tier prizes can be collected at lottery retailers.
Powerball players also got lucky last Wednesday when more than 33,300 other state Powerball tickets won prizes. This included more than 6,400 tickets purchased with Power Play and more than 3,400 tickets purchased with Double Play additions.
Residual bonuses for the state
The Wawa and Ennie Inc., where the winning prizes were purchased, each earn $5,000 bonuses thanks to the wins.
All state lottery proceeds in Pennsylvania benefit programs for older residents, providing tax rebates, transportation, care services, meals, and more. Pennsylvania is the only state that diverts proceeds exclusively to the elderly. Since 1972, ticket sales have contributed more than $36.2 billion to fund these programs.
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