COLUMBIA, SC (April 1, 2009) – A Sumter man almost didn’t play Palmetto Cash 5 on Monday. But a quick change of heart compelled him to buy a ticket.
That decision earned him a $500,000 prize! The winner, who doesn’t want to publicize his name, told lottery staff he’s a frequent player, but had recently decided to scale back on his entertainment.
“I couldn’t believe it when I saw the winning numbers were 2, 3, 17, 25 and 29 with a Power-Up multiplier of 5,” the man said. “But I knew they were my numbers!” What will the retiree do with his half-million dollar win? “I’ll take care of my family.”
The player purchased his lucky ticket at Young’s Food Stores #664 in Sumter.
The winner says when he plays Palmetto Cash 5 he uses the same five numbers. They are the birthdates of his children. When he plays, he also purchases the Power-Up multiplier. That wise move earned him a bigger check.
The top prize in the Palmetto Cash 5 game is $100,000, but that prize can be multiplied up to five times, depending on the Power-Up multiplier selected. The odds of winning a top prize in Palmetto Cash 5 are 1 in 501,942.
Since the Lottery’s inception in 2002, the General Assembly has appropriated more than $2 billion for educational purposes through fiscal year 2009. In the fiscal year ending June 30, 2008, more than 97 cents of every dollar spent by players on the South Carolina Education Lottery was returned to the state in the form of contributions to education, prizes, retailer commissions and payment to contractors for goods and services.
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