$25,000 a year for life or six-digit jackpot choice for lottery winner in Columbia
The person who recently bought a winning lottery ticket at a Columbia convenience store has to choose between annual payouts for the rest of their life, or a one-time-only, six-figure prize.
Anyone who bought a Lucky for Life game at Two Notch Mart on Two Notch Road should check the tickets to see if they’re the person who will have to make the choice about the life-changing prize, South Carolina Education Lottery said in a news release.
The ticket holder must choose between $25,000 a year for life, or a one-time payout of $390,000, according to the release.
The winning numbers — 10, 11, 17, 27, 32, and Lucky Ball 15 — were drawn Feb. 18.
If the person had also matched the Lucky Ball number that was drawn (12), the prize would have increased to $7,000 a week for life, according to the game’s rules.
Should the winner choose the “for life,” prize, it is payable for the length of the winner’s natural life, with payments guaranteed for a minimum of 20 years, lottery officials said.
The winner now has 180 days to claim the prize, according to lottery officials.
“Speak with someone you trust to help you decide,” lottery officials said. “Sign the back of your ticket and put it in a safe location until you’re ready to come forward to claim the prize.”
The winner will be allowed to retain some privacy, as South Carolina is one of eight states — along with Delaware, Kansas, Georgia, Maryland, North Dakota, Ohio and Texas — that allow lottery winners to remain anonymous.
The odds of winning $25,000 a year for life are are 1,813,028-to-1, lottery officials said.
Two Notch Mart, near Spring Valley High School, will receive a commission of $3,900 for selling the winning ticket.
The winner will join 8,000 other South Carolina residents who collect annual prizes — from $3 to $25,000 — because they hold Lucky for Life tickets, according to the release.
This is the second $25,000-a-year Lucky for Life winning ticket sold on Two Notch Road since late December. On Christmas Eve, an identical winning ticket was sold to a Midlands woman less than a half a mile away at Jimmy’s Mart.
Two days before that December drawing, a Midlands man bought a Palmetto Cash 5 ticket at Jimmy’s Mart that turned into a $100,000 payday.
On Jan. 18, another Palmetto Cash 5 game good for $100,000 was sold at Jimmy’s Mart.
The store is already well known for its hot dogs and catfish stew. It’s known as by most as “Hot Dog Heaven,” The State previously reported, but it could garner a new reputation.
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