News writer
A young man from Livingston County recently purchased his first-ever lottery ticket and won a $500,000 jackpot. The player, who chose to remain anonymous, purchased the Wild Side instant-win game from the Fast Lane Convenience store, located at 3540 State Street in Saginaw.
Although he'd never played a lottery game before, he had seen his parents play instant-win tickets and decided to buy one while he was at the store. In an interview with the Michigan Lottery, he said:
I didn't know how to play the game, so I took the ticket home and had my parents walk me through it. When we revealed the $500,000 prize, we didn't think it was real.
He and his parents traveled to the Saginaw Lottery Office to have the lottery officials take a look at the ticket. They confirmed it was real and that the man had won $5000,000. He said:
When they confirmed it really was a $500,000 winner, we were in disbelief. I knew right then that this money was about to change my life.
What made it even more exciting was that the day he collected his winning was his 21st birthday. He plans to use his prize money to pay for his tuition while studying abroad and save the remainder.
How to play the Wild Side instant-win game
This is a $5 instant-win game with a top prize of $500,000. To play, remove the five dollar symbols to reveal the winning numbers. Then, remove the six dollar symbols to reveal your numbers. If any of your numbers match the winning numbers, you win the prize amount shown for that number. Remove the other six dollar symbols to reveal your wild numbers. If any of your wild numbers match the winning numbers, you win five times the amount shown by that number. Next, remove the three Wild Bonus circles. If you reveal a $10, $25, or $50 symbol in any of the circles, you win that amount instantly. The prize range for this instant-in game is $5, $10, $25, $50, $100, $500, $2,500, and $500,000. To date, two $500,000 jackpots remain.
More ways to become an instant winner
If you like playing scratch-off games, you'll love playing the Michigan Lottery, which has 119 instant-win games to choose from. Some of Michigan players' favorites include:
- Cashword: This is a $2 instant-win ticket with a top prize of $30,000.
- Blazing Hot 7's: This is a $5 instant-win ticket with a top prize of $500,000.
- Cash is King/Queen: This is a $10 instant-win ticket with a top prize of $1 million.
- $1,000,000 Extravaganza: This is a $10 instant-win ticket with a top prize of $1 million.
- $300,000,000 Diamond Riches: This is a $50 instant-win ticket with a top prize of $6 million.
