(AUSTIN) – Only one top prize remains today in the Giant Jumbo Bucks scratch-off game after Jody L. Cox of Garrison claimed one of the $50,000 prizes on Friday.
After an evening of Bingo in Nacogdoches, Cox and his wife stopped at the J & S Food Mart located at 381 S. Highway 59 in Garrison. They did a little shopping and picked out a Giant Jumbo Bucks ticket to take home.
Sitting at the dining room table, Cox’s wife scratched their ticket. However, she didn’t realize how much they’d won.
Cox explained, “She had hit on the first number and was thinking that she only won $50 until she realized that there were more zeros.”
After looking over the ticket himself, Cox agreed that it looked like a $50,000 winner, and he immediately began celebrating.
“I jumped up and yelled out,” he said. “We were so excited.”
The Giant Jumbo Bucks game was introduced in May and features prizes ranging from $5 to $50,000. Overall odds of winning any prize are one in 3.69, including break-even prizes.
“Many of our players say they initially couldn’t believe they won,” said Texas Lottery Commission Executive Director Anthony J. Sadberry. “However, real people do win in towns large and small throughout the state of Texas.”
Although excited, Cox kept a cool head regarding his plans for spending this windfall. He said simply, “Now we are going to pay off our house.”
Tonight’s Mega Millions® jackpot is worth an estimated $88 million. Wednesday’s Lotto Texas® jackpot is worth an estimated $16 million.
