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Loose pocket change leads to $55,558 win for East Prairie man
EAST PRAIRIE, Mo. — It’s not uncommon to get a craving for a snack when stopping at the gas station to fill up.
One East Prairie man took it one step further on July 25 and also purchased a Missouri Lottery “5X Bingo” Scratchers ticket with the extra change in his pocket.
“It wasn’t my initial idea to get a Lottery ticket,” explained Larry Taylor Jr., who only purchased a single Scratchers.
Taylor scratched his ticket in the car while waiting on his girlfriend to get off work, but he didn’t analyze the ticket until he was on his way home. At first, he thought he only matched four corners and a line to win $3,000.
He headed to a friend’s house to get a second opinion. They talked about the ticket and looked over everything again. Then Taylor began to read the back of the ticket, and he realized he had missed a crucial part of the game.
“I had totally forgot about the ‘X.’So I flipped it back over, and that is when I realized I had won $55,558,” he explained.
He decided to take off work to claim his prize the next day at the Missouri Lottery office in St. Louis. He plans to use some of the money to take his daughter to the zoo and to go on a family vacation.
Taylor purchased his winning Scratchers ticket at Casey’s General Store, 605 W. Washington St., in East Prairie.
“5X Bingo” is a $3 game that began on Jan. 22. The ticket, which features six cards to play, has more than $3.5 million in total prizes remaining. An updated list of remaining Scratchers prizes can be found at MOLottery.com or by using the Missouri Lottery app.