Lottery player on losing streak buys 2 more SC tickets — and wins. ‘Checked it 20 times’

A lottery player decided to buy two more tickets in South Carolina after scratching a few non-winners — then his luck changed dramatically.

The Charleston man turned a $3 ticket into a $100,000 top prize in the Lady Jumbo Bucks Crossword game sold at an Exxon gas station, the South Carolina Education Lottery said Feb. 13.

“I must have checked it 20 times,” he told lottery officials. “It was amazing.”

He said crossword-style games are his favorite.

The winner beat the 1-in-600,000 odds of winning one of seven jackpot prizes of $100,000 in the game, records show. Three top prizes remain.

“I’m enjoying life,” he told lottery officials.

He’s not the only recent winner in the scratch-off game, which debuted in September. Another Lowcountry man got out of debt when he won a top prize in Hardeeville, McClatchy News reported Feb. 13.

The Exxon in Charleston received $1,000 for selling the lucky ticket.