A United States Army veteran recently won $150,000 after playing the Powerball lottery in the state of North Carolina. The veteran’s excitement at the huge prize was shared in a recent press release by the North Carolina Education Lottery.
In a Tuesday press release, the North Carolina Education Lottery said Donald Smiley, a retired Army veteran, purchased a “lucky $3 Quick Pick ticket” from the Catamount Travel Center in Whittier, North Carolina.
After matching numbers on the red Powerball and four of the five white balls during a Powerball drawing on October 9, the Army veteran won $50,000. However, the North Carolina Education Lottery explained that since Smiley purchased a Power Play ticket, the Army veteran’s prize “tripled to $150,000 when the 3X multiplier hit.”
According to the North Carolina Education Lottery’s press release, Smiley claimed his winnings at the lottery’s headquarters on Monday. After state and federal tax withholdings, the Army veteran took home $107,251, which he plans to use to pay his bills.
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Describing his reaction after being announced as the winner of the $150,000 lottery prize, Smiley told the North Carolina Education Lottery, “I was so excited, I didn’t even know what to do. I definitely couldn’t sleep.”
“I was like, ‘Am I reading this right,'” the U.S. Army veteran added. “I’m still so excited.”
In a post shared earlier this month on X, formerly Twitter, the North Carolina Education Lottery announced, “A #NCLottery player in #Whittier tried their luck on a #Powerball ticket from Catamount Travel Center on Hwy 441 N and won a $150,000 prize! The winner matched 4 out of 5 white balls and the Power Ball. Congratulations to the lucky player!”
According to the Merced Sun-Star while Smiley won $150,000 from the Powerball lottery, his ticket was only one number away from winning the Powerball’s jackpot prize, which was roughly $337 million on the night of the drawing. The outlet noted that a player would have to match all five white balls and the red Powerball in order to win the Powerball jackpot. The odds of winning the jackpot prize are 1 in 292,201,338, according to the Merced Sun-Star.
