Woman wins huge Powerball prize in Michigan — but it takes her six weeks to notice

Eileen Wickett never wants to miss a Powerball drawing.

That’s why she set up a subscription with the Michigan Lottery, where her tickets are “automatically purchased” through her online account.

Recently, one of her Powerball tickets was a big winner. But the 60-year-old woman from Northville had no idea how much she won.

She received an email telling her she won a prize, but she “assumed it was a few dollars” and so didn’t immediately check her account.

“Since I have a subscription and my tickets are automatically purchased, I didn’t log on to my account for a while,” Wickett said in an April 7 news release from the Michigan Lottery.

“It wasn’t until six weeks after I’d won that I logged into my account and saw a $1 million prize pending,” she continued.

Her ticket for the Feb. 6 Powerball drawing had matched the five white balls — 05-11-22-23-69, according to the release.

“It was such an awesome feeling,” Wickett said when claiming her prize. “I called my kids right away to tell them the good news.”

She plans to use her winnings to renovate her home, go on a vacation and share with family, officials said.

Northville is part of the Detroit metropolitan area.

This story was originally published April 7, 2023 at 9:16 AM with the headline "Woman wins huge Powerball prize in Michigan — but it takes her six weeks to notice."