‘It made vacation better.’ Tourist stops in small SC town and scores a big lottery win
A tourist was traveling to the beach when she stopped in a small town — and scored a winning South Carolina lottery ticket.
“It made vacation better,” the woman told the S.C. Education Lottery after hitting the jackpot.
It turns out, the traveler bought her scratch-off at a “lucky store,” which sold two other winning tickets in recent months, officials said on Thursday, Nov. 11.
This time around, the vacationer was going to the coast when she ended up at the Hot Spot convenience store in Gresham, roughly 40 miles northwest of Myrtle Beach. The area is in Marion County, where about 30,000 people live, McClatchy News reported.
While visiting, the tourist spent $10 on a lottery ticket “and took home a souvenir that will pay off her house,” the S.C. Education Lottery said. That’s because her Bonus Star Bonanza scratch-off was worth $200,000 — a prize that totaled $138,000 after taxes.
The winner, who wasn’t named in a news release, beat 1-in-720,000 odds to take home the extra cash. Her windfall continues a lucky streak tied to the same small-town store.
In September, officials said a customer initially thought his lottery ticket was worth $3 — but scored a much bigger prize.
Within two weeks, someone got richer after a $50,000 Powerball game ticket was also sold at the Hot Spot store. That winner didn’t come forward at first but has since claimed the prize money, according to lottery spokesperson Holli Armstrong.
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This story was originally published November 12, 2021 at 10:31 AM with the headline "‘It made vacation better.’ Tourist stops in small SC town and scores a big lottery win."
