A 50-year-old man in Iowa bought a Lotto America ticket at a Kum & Go convenience store, but waited until he was at work to check if he was a winner.
Once at work on Tuesday, Feb. 14, Aaron McDermott checked his numbers to see if he won a prize during the Monday night drawing, according to a news release from the Iowa Lottery.
“He was so surprised, he started shaking,” according to lottery officials.
McDermott, of Altoona, matched the five white balls with numbers 2-17-21-22-26 — earning him a $20,000 Lotto America prize.
His wife soon received “an early-morning wakeup call” with the good news.
“She was still in bed when I called,” McDermott told lottery officials. “I heard her scream, ‘You won what?’ I said, ‘Yeah!’”
McDermott left the winning ticket in a lanyard around his next for the rest of his work day, then went to claim his prize, according to the release.
He plans to use the prize money to buy a new bed and pay bills, officials said.
Altoona is part of the Des Moines metropolitan area.
If you or a loved one shows signs of gambling addiction, you can seek help by calling the national gambling hotline at 1-800-522-4700 or visiting the National Council on Problem Gambling website.
Couple can take long-awaited honeymoon after husband wins big in Iowa lottery
Woman spots red lottery tickets — her favorite color — and now she’ll be seeing green
50-year-old stops to buy soda at QuikTrip — and leaves with winning Iowa lottery ticket