Local

Top 11 surprising Missouri lottery wins that baffled winners and families

Stories by Kansas City Star journalists, with AI summarization

The articles share stories of Missouri lottery players who won unexpected amounts, often much larger than they first believed. Many winners doubted their good fortune until they double-checked or showed their tickets to others. Family and friends played key roles in confirming wins. Both instant tickets and draw games generated surprise outcomes.

One player bought a scratch-off thinking he won $50,000 but later found out the prize was $2 million. A store clerk picked another person’s ticket that turned out to be worth $2 million. A woman believed she won $5 but discovered each symbol on her ticket was worth $5,000, totaling $100,000. A pair of friends paused a video game to check their Powerball ticket and realized they had won $50,000 after using a special game feature. These stories show that surprise, disbelief, and careful checking often follow sudden lottery wins in Missouri.

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

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. 2: LOTTERY PLAYER THOUGHT SHE WON $5,000 — THEN CO-WORKER CHECKS HER TICKET. ‘OH, MY GOD!’

The Missouri Lottery winner said she clutched the winning ticket to her chest after realizing her big win. | Published September 16, 2024 | Read Full Story by Mike Stunson

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. 3: LUCKY LOTTERY PLAYER NEEDED A CALCULATOR TO ADD UP HER WINNINGS IN MISSOURI

“I couldn’t believe it,” the winner said. | Published November 18, 2024 | Read Full Story by Kate Linderman

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

NO. 4: 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 South Carolina woman won $300,000 on a scratch-off ticket three years after winning a $250,000 lottery prize, lottery officials said.

NO. 5: POWERBALL WINNER MAKES FRIEND PAUSE GAME TO CHECK WINNING NUMBERS. ‘DID WE JUST...?’

“You’re going to want to get off for this,” one of the Missouri friends said as he encouraged the other to pause the video game. | Published January 15, 2025 | Read Full Story by Mike Stunson

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. 6: 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

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

NO. 7: LOTTERY PLAYER THINKS HE WON $50K. THEN HE LEARNS MISSOURI TICKET IS WORTH A LOT MORE

He turned out to be 40 times as lucky. | Published January 17, 2025 | Read Full Story by Rhiannon Saegert

No image found
A Missouri lottery player thought she won $5, but missed a few zeroes as she added up her total prize.

NO. 8: LOTTERY PLAYER THINKS SHE WON $5 ON MISSOURI TICKET — THEN SHE LOOKS CLOSER. ‘BLESSED’

The lucky winner continued to scratch her ticket, revealing an even bigger Missouri prize. | Published January 29, 2025 | Read Full Story by Kate Linderman

No image found
A Maryland teacher’s dream about her deceased father inspired lottery numbers that won her $50,000. She plans to erase family debts with the winnings.

NO. 9: MAN PULLS OUT CALCULATOR AFTER BIG LOTTERY WIN. ‘NEVER HELD THIS MUCH MONEY IN MY LIFE’

The Missouri man had two people check the ticket. | Published January 30, 2025 | Read Full Story by Jennifer Rodriguez

No image found
A Google Maps screenshot of Premier Bowling & Recreation Center, 11400 E. Route 350 in Raytown.

NO. 10: 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

No image found
Price Chopper, 109 N. Cedar Drive in Belton, sold a $50,000 Powerball ticket in September 2024. The winner has until March 30 to claim the prize.

NO. 11: 2 UNCLAIMED $50,000 MISSOURI LOTTERY TICKETS EXPIRE SOON. ARE THEY YOURS?

If the winners don’t come forward by March 29, the money will go to benefit public education, the Missouri Lottery said in a press release. | Published March 21, 2025 | Read Full Story by Joseph Hernandez

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.