Timothy Bridgers of Tarboro is celebrating his good fortune after he won a $1 million lottery prize.
Bridgers bought the winning $5,000 Loaded scratch-off ticket when he went to Midway Grocery on N.C. 43 North in Rocky Mount.
He claimed his prize Wednesday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh. Bridgers had the choice of taking a $1 million annuity that has 20 payments of $50,000 a year or a lump sum of $600,000. He chose the lump sum. After federal and state tax withholdings, he took home $424,503.
The $10 ticket launched in May with four top prizes of $1 million. Two $1 million prizes remain.
Ticket sales from games like $5,000 Loaded make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $700 million a year for education. For details on how lottery funds made a difference in all of North Carolina’s 100 counties, click on the “Impact” section of the lottery’s website.