Michigan man wins $2 million playing Money instant game

An Isabella County resident almost tossed his millions in the garbage. The lucky 29-year-old Michigan Lottery player recently discovered that he’d won $2 million on a Money scratch-off game when he was going through some discarded tickets in the center console of his truck.

The anonymous player purchased the winning ticket about four months ago from the EZ Mart located at 550 E. Wright Avenue in Shepherd. When he initially scratched off the ticket, he didn’t think he’d won anything, so he tossed the ticket in his truck.

Weeks later, when his wife handed him some tickets to check at the store, he grabbed the scratch-off from his truck to double-check. It’s lucky he did because the lottery kiosk gave him a message to file a claim for his $2 million prize from the winning Money ticket. He claimed his prize as a lump sum of $1.3 million. He plans to invest his winnings.

He told the Michigan Lottery: "I went back out to my truck to look the ticket over and realized I'd matched number 13. When I revealed the '$2 MIL' symbol underneath, I was speechless," the lucky winner said. "It is a miracle this ticket didn't end up in the trash."

How to play Michigan Lottery Money instant-win

Money is an in-store instant-win ticket. It costs $20 to play and has a top prize of $2 million. Game 1 and Game 2 are played separately. To play Game 1 and Game 2, scratch off the five disc symbols in each game to reveal the winning numbers. Then scratch off the 10 dollar symbols in each game to reveal your numbers.

If you match any of your numbers to any of the winning numbers in the same game, you win the prize amount shown below that number. If you reveal a bankroll symbol, you win the prize shown instantly. If you reveal a $100 bill, you automatically win $100. If any of your numbers in Game 1 or Game 2 match the Bonus Number, you win five times the prize amount. If you reveal a stack of cash symbol in any of the Big Bill Bonus spots, you instantly win the prize shown. As of December 12, 2023, there are still two jackpot prizes of $2 million remaining.

About the Michigan Lottery

The Michigan Lottery was launched in 1972 with the 50 Cent Green Game. Three years later, the state introduced its first instant-win game. 1977 saw the addition of a computerized gaming system, and the Daily 3 game was launched. Michigan Lotto was introduced in 1984. The game set a national record, garnering $3.1 million in sales during the first week. 

Today, for every $1 spent on Michigan Lottery tickets, 25 cents goes to the School Aid Fund. Since 1972, the Michigan Lottery has contributed more than $27 billion towards education. In 2022, the Michigan Lottery provided $1.2 billion towards public education. That amounts to around $880 per K-12 student.