Nicola Pungitore III of Norwood rang in the New Year with a $10 million grand prize from the Massachusetts State Lottery.
Pungitore, who was given a Billion Dollar Bonanza instant ticket as a Christmas present from his mother, received his first of 20 annuity checks for $500,000 today at Lottery headquarter in Braintree.
The lucky ticket was purchased at Dairy Fine on Fulton Street in Norwood. The store will receive a $50,000 commission on the sale.
Billion Dollar Bonanza is the biggest game ever produced by a U.S. lottery. The $20 instant game features 10 instant prizes of $10 million and 150 instant prizes of $1 million. Overall, there are nearly 22 million winning tickets in the game.
