Lottery player has used same numbers for 20 years. Her patience was rewarded in big way
Tamara Laughinghouse was enjoying a coffee with her father while visiting her parents in Wyoming recently.
As the two sat and sipped their drinks, Laughinghouse’s dad checked July 17’s winning Powerball numbers, according to an Aug. 4 North Carolina Education Lottery news release. The numbers sounded familiar.
“I asked him to please reread the numbers,” Laughinghouse told lottery officials.
That’s when the lottery player realized her dad had in fact read her numbers, officials said.
“I’ve been playing those same numbers for over 20 years,” Laughinghouse said in the release. “They are the different birthdays in my family.”
She didn’t yet know how much she won, so her husband got online to check, according to officials.
“[He] said ‘I think you won $200,000,’” Laughinghouse told officials. “We all got excited and gave each other hugs.”
Laughinghouse bought her Power Play ticket from Food Lion in Mooresville, which is about 30 miles north of Charlotte. Her numbers matched four of the five white balls and the red Powerball plus the 4X multiplier, according to lottery officials.
After taxes, Laughinghouse took home $142,501, officials said. She plans to take a trip to Italy, which is where her great-great-grandfather was from.
“I always wanted to go see the area where he was from,” she said in the release. “My husband and I might go now.”
In addition to her trip, Laughinghouse said she will donate to her old high school and save some of her remaining winnings.
This story was originally published August 4, 2023 at 12:37 PM with the headline "Lottery player has used same numbers for 20 years. Her patience was rewarded in big way."
