Lottery player scratches big prize, then shares news with his wife. ‘We got us one!’

A large lottery prize came as a big surprise to a Virginia carpenter and his wife, according to lottery officials.

James Jones III made a stop at a Raceway in Carrollton on Christmas Eve and decided to purchase a lottery ticket, according to a Feb. 7 Virginia Lottery news release. When he scratched off his ticket, he saw he won a top prize, lottery officials said.

Jones realized he had won $125,000, according to lottery officials. He immediately shared the news with his wife, lottery officials said.

“We got us one!” the Hampton resident said to his wife, per lottery officials.

Jones’ win marked the fourth top prize won with the Holiday Cash 20X lottery ticket, according to lottery officials. There was one more $125,000 prize unclaimed as of Feb. 7.

“When you do win something, it feels good!” Jones said in the release.

Jones told lottery officials he plans to use his big prize to make investments.

Carrollton is about 25 miles northwest of Norfolk and Hampton is about 15 miles northeast of Carrollton.

This story was originally published February 7, 2024 at 12:12 PM with the headline "Lottery player scratches big prize, then shares news with his wife. ‘We got us one!’."

Makiya Seminera

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Makiya Seminera is a national real-time reporter for McClatchy News. She graduated from the University of Florida in May 2023. She previously was a politics reporting intern at The News & Observer in Raleigh, North Carolina, and The State in Columbia, South Carolina. She also served as editor-in-chief of UF’s student-run newspaper The Independent Florida Alligator in 2022.