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Eleven stories of chance leading to Missouri lottery windfalls

Stories by Kansas City Star journalists, with AI summarization

Everyday moments have sparked Missouri lottery luck for several winners. One man forgot his sunglasses and stopped for a drink in De Soto, leaving with a $50,000 Christmas Countdown prize. Another chose a Cash Quest ticket on a whim in Greenfield and was stunned to see it was worth $50,000.

In St. Louis, letting a clerk pick a $20 scratch-off led to a $2 million win. From changing plans at a laundromat to acting on a low blood sugar snack stop, random choices have brought big rewards and surprise windfalls to unsuspecting players across the state.

A Missouri woman won $1 million at the lottery, and it’s not her first big prize, officials said.

NO. 1: MISSOURI MAN THOUGHT HE WON ONLY $4 FROM POWERBALL DRAWING. CLERKS TOLD HIM OTHERWISE

Store clerks knew for a few days that someone had a winning ticket. It took this man a while to figure it out. | Published May 30, 2024 | Read Full Story by Joseph Hernandez

The federal government tracks awards like grants, loans and contracts in communities across the United States. Here’s what those grants fund in Horry County, South Carolina.

NO. 2: WOMAN BUYS LOTTERY TICKET AFTER CHURCH — THEN KEEPS PREACHING. ‘THANK YOU, LORD!’

The Missouri winner’s son thought she won $20,000 — but it was much more. | Published October 2, 2024 | Read Full Story by Mike Stunson

A South Carolina woman won $300,000 on a scratch-off ticket three years after winning a $250,000 lottery prize, lottery officials said.

NO. 3: MAN’S FORGOTTEN SUNGLASSES LEAD HIM TO HUGE MISSOURI LOTTERY WIN. ‘I WAS SO SHOCKED!’

The lottery winner said he called his wife and read the game’s instructions to make sure he won. | Published October 23, 2024 | Read Full Story by Mike Stunson

Nobody won the grand prize, which rises to an estimated $133 million, with a cash value of about $60.3 million.

NO. 4: LOTTERY PLAYER WINS JACKPOT ON RANDOM MISSOURI TICKET. ‘NEVER WON ANYTHING LIKE THIS’

The man said he “just picked a ticket” randomly. | Published November 27, 2024 | Read Full Story by Jennifer Rodriguez

A longtime lottery player’s luck finally changed in the Maryland Powerball, winning them a big prize.

NO. 5: MEGA MILLIONS PLAYER JUST MISSES $1.2 BILLION JACKPOT IN MISSOURI — BUT STILL WINS BIG

A California player hit the grand prize. | Published December 29, 2024 | Read Full Story by Don Sweeney

Nobody won the grand prize, which rises to an estimated $133 million, with a cash value of about $60.3 million.

NO. 6: MAN LETS STORE CLERK PICK SCRATCH-OFF GAME IN MISSOURI, AND NOW HE’S A MILLIONAIRE

“I looked at it at least 30 times to make sure it was real,” he said. | Published December 31, 2024 | Read Full Story by Jennifer Rodriguez

A lottery player kept winning “bigger and bigger” prizes in a “$5,000,000 Fortune” game, so he had his wife double check he was reading it right, officials said.

NO. 7: LOTTERY PLAYER KEPT WINNING ‘BIGGER AND BIGGER PRIZES’ — SO HE HAD WIFE DOUBLE-CHECK

His wife was in the kitchen and he was in the living room of their Missouri home, “and he kept running around to tell me what he had won,” she said. | Published January 16, 2025 | Read Full Story by Brooke Baitinger

A Google Maps screenshot of Premier Bowling & Recreation Center, 11400 E. Route 350 in Raytown.

NO. 8: KANSAS CITY AREA MAN TOOK DAYS TO REALIZE HE’D WON BIG IN MO LOTTERY: ‘I WAS SHOCKED’

The man bought the ticket at a Raytown bowling alley and only found out he won after his friend called him to check in. | Published February 20, 2025 | Read Full Story by Joseph Hernandez

A South Carolina woman won $300,000 on a scratch-off ticket three years after winning a $250,000 lottery prize, lottery officials said.

NO. 9: WOMAN’S ‘TOTALLY RANDOM CHOICE’ WINS BIG IN MISSOURI LOTTERY. ‘IT JUST DIDN’T SINK IN’

“I just kept looking at it over and over!” the woman said of her jackpot win. | Published March 4, 2025 | Read Full Story by Mike Stunson

A Michigan lottery player won $500,000.

NO. 10: POWERBALL PLAYER WINS $50,000 IN MISSOURI. WHERE WAS THE LUCKY TICKET SOLD?

The ticket matched four winning numbers and the Powerball, lottery officials say. | Published April 1, 2025 | Read Full Story by Don Sweeney

A Missouri lottery player “randomly” bought a 777 Jackpot ticket and won big.

NO. 11: MAN’S LOW BLOOD SUGAR LEADS HIM TO BUY A SODA — AND A WINNING MISSOURI LOTTERY TICKET

“I was just in disbelief,” the winner said. | Published April 2, 2025 | Read Full Story by Mike Stunson

The summary above was drafted with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in our News division. All stories listed were reported, written and edited by McClatchy journalists.