Michigan man checks lottery ticket before leaving for hunting trip, wins $25K for life
A northern Michigan man plans to live debt-free after winning $25,000 a year for life from the Michigan Lottery.
Craig Capell, 68, of Traverse City, was preparing for a hunting trip when he checked his Lucky For Life ticket and discovered that he matched the five white balls in the Lucky For Life drawing on Nov. 13: 03-09-16-20-42.
"I always play Mega Millions and Lotto 47, and on the days there's not a Mega Millions or Lotto 47 drawing, I play Lucky For Life," said Capell in a statement. "I was at the store and realized it was a Lucky For Life day, so I bought my ticket. I was up early the next morning getting ready for a hunting trip and checked my ticket before I left."
Capell bought his winning ticket at Oleson's Food Store, located at 3850 North Long Lake Road in Traverse City.
"When I saw I'd won $25,000 a year for life, I couldn't believe it. I had my wife look the ticket over and she was a little skeptical, so I looked online and saw a winner was sold at Oleson's, which is where I bought my ticket. Once I got home from my trip, I called the Lottery to verify my ticket and that's when I knew it was real," he said.
Capell elected to receive his winnings as a one-time lump sum payment of $390,000. With his winnings, he plans to invest, take a vacation and live debt-free.
"Winning still feels pretty unreal, but it's a relief knowing we will be able to live debt-free," he said.
Lucky For Life tickets are $2 per play and allow players the chance to win prizes ranging from $3 to cash for life. Players can win $1,000 a day for life by matching all five winning numbers ranging from 1 to 48 and one Lucky Ball ranging from 1 to 18. Players can win $25,000 a year for life by matching all five winning numbers but not the Lucky Ball.
Drawings take place each day at 10:38 p.m.