Omaha Man Wins $12,000 Iowa Lottery Prize
Mike McFarland Claims Second Top Prize In New 'Neon Green' Scratch Game
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CLIVE, Iowa – A $12,000 lottery prize paved the way to a sweet road trip for an Omaha, Neb., truck driver.
Mike McFarland won the second of six top prizes in the Iowa Lottery's "Neon Green" scratch game.
McFarland bought his winning ticket at Pilot Travel Center, 2495 210th Ave. in Percival, but it wasn't until a stop in Tulsa, Okla., that he decided to scratch it.
"The first thing I unscratched was a 12," he said. "I was like, 'Eh, I just won $12 or whatever. I was cleaning it up a little bit, and I'm like, 'Whoa, that says $12,000!'"
McFarland called his fiancée, Tiffany, who requested a photo of the winning ticket.
"She asked me five or six times on the way home, 'Have the numbers changed?'" he said with a laugh.
McFarland claimed his prize on Tuesday at the lottery's regional office in Council Bluffs.
"I'm probably not going to play for a while," he said. "I'm going to take care of some bills and all that good stuff.
"(It was a) 400-mile trip. I get paid by the mile. I got paid really, really, really good this time!"
Neon Green is a $2 scratch game. More details about how to play this game, and the number of prizes still up for grabs in it, can be found on the Iowa Lottery's website, www.ialottery.com.
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