A Missouri man who bought a Powerball ticket in February said it spent months forgotten in the console of his pickup truck before he discovered it was a $50,000 winner.
The West Plains man told Missouri Lottery officials that he had a stack of unchecked lottery tickets sitting in his truck’s console. “I purchased tickets in February, and I hadn’t checked them,” he said in a statement released by the lottery. “It was just one of those times where I felt, ‘Well, I probably need to get them out of the console of my pickup.’”
During a visit to a local gas station to fill up on fuel, the man said he decided to finally take the tickets inside to scan them. He was shocked when the store clerk told him he had won $50,000 in the Feb. 11 Powerball drawing.
“I really didn’t know what to say. I’ve played for years and this is the biggest thing I’ve ever won,” he said.
The winner said the shock of his discovery caused him to forget his original errand entirely. “I had paid for gas and even drove off and forgot to get my gas,” he said.
The man added that some of his winnings will be spent on his grandchildren. The Missouri Lottery did not release the winner’s name.