Henry Lipsey of Fayetteville said he plans to use part of a $200,000 lottery prize to pay for a cruise to celebrate his 50th wedding anniversary.
“We’re going to go to the Dominican Republic and the Turks and Caicos Islands,” Lipsey said. “We’ve been married a long time... I always say, ‘Happy wife, happy life.’”
The Army veteran’s good fortune happened Monday afternoon at B&B Bowling Lanes on Fort Bragg Road in Fayetteville.
“I’m part of a senior bowling league,” Lipsey said. “We didn’t win our games, so I decided I might have better luck playing a scratch-off ticket.”
Lipsey wanted to play the Crown Jewels scratch-off game, but the clerk told him it was sold-out. He bought some Carolina Panther tickets instead.
“I scanned the first ticket and didn’t win anything,” Lipsey said. “When I scanned the second ticket it said, ‘Go to lottery headquarters.’ I turned it over and scratched it. When I saw the helmet and the number, I got a big smile on my face. I was a happy camper.”
Lipsey, accompanied by his wife and daughter, claimed the prize Tuesday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh. After required state and federal tax withholdings, he took home $141,003.
The $5 ticket launched this month. Lipsey is the first player to win a $200,000 top prize playing the game. Four top prizes remain.
All Carolina Panthers tickets can also be entered into three second-chance drawings for V.I.P. experiences at a Panthers game. Players have the chance to win a luxury suite for all home games in the 2019 football season, a stadium tent tailgating package, or a behind-the-scenes game experience.
Ticket sales from games like the Carolina Panthers make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $600 million a year for education. For details on how lottery funds have made a difference in all of North Carolina’s 100 counties, click on the “Impact” section of the lottery’s website.
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