Los Gatos Woman Plays Fortune Cookie Numbers In Lottery - Wins $421,000

LOS GATOS (CBS SF) -- A South Bay woman proved to be a smart cookie when it comes to picking out lottery numbers.

Merces Goncalves used numbers she had found inside a fortune cookie to win over $421,000 in the March 4th Mega Millions draw. Lottery officials say she actually played five sets of numbers found inside cookies, but one set matched the  10, 29, 31, 35, and 45, landing her a real fortune.

On that ticket she had Mega number 9, just one off the correct number 10 and a $240 million prize.

The retired Goncalves said she and husband Alvaro Goncalves put off their honeymoon more than half a century ago, but now plan to take a Hawaiian trip to make up for it.

She bought the winning ticket at a liquor store in Los Gatos.  Santa Clara County also saw a $425 million Powerball ticket was sold In Milpitas last month and a $324 million Mega Millions ticket sold in San Jose last December. Both of those shops landed on our list of luckiest Bay Area spots to pick up a lottery ticket.

Just last month, a New York woman said she used fortune cookie numbers to match five numbers and claim a $2 million Power Ball prize.

TM and © Copyright 2014 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2014 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Read more
f

We and our partners use cookies to understand how you use our site, improve your experience and serve you personalized content and advertising. Read about how we use cookies in our cookie policy and how you can control them by clicking Manage Settings. By continuing to use this site, you accept these cookies.