Michigan Woman Wins $1 Million After Surprise Cinco de Mayo Lottery Stop

The 39-year-old woman from Genesee County said buying scratch-off tickets wasn’t even part of the plan. But while celebrating with a friend on May 5, her friend suggested stopping for a few Michigan Lottery tickets — and that spontaneous decision changed everything.

She picked up a $5 Lucky Stars scratch-off ticket at Liquor Wheel, located in Flint.

At first, the outing seemed pretty normal. She won $30 on a few tickets and decided to roll those winnings into two more scratch-offs. That’s when the unbelievable moment happened.

A Life-Changing Surprise

• Turned a small $30 win into a $1 million jackpot
• Discovered the prize while still inside the store
• Ran to her car in tears after realizing she’d hit the top prize

The winner said she was completely shocked when she scratched the ticket and saw the amount.

“It was unreal! I’m still trying to process it,” she shared with lottery officials.

After claiming her prize at Michigan Lottery headquarters, she chose the lump-sum payment option, taking home around $693,000 instead of annual payments spread over time.

She already has meaningful plans for the money. According to the winner, she wants to:

• Buy her parents a new house
• Get them a new car
• Save the remaining winnings for the future

The Lucky Stars instant game is still fairly new in Michigan, but it’s already handing out major cash prizes. Lottery officials said more than $2 million in prizes have already been claimed statewide since the game launched this month.

Players can still win prizes ranging from $5 up to $1 million, with millions of dollars in prizes still available across the state.