$10,000-Winning Mega Millions® Ticket Sold In Black Hawk County
Tuesday's Jackpot Climbs to an estimated $1.58 Billion
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CLIVE, Iowa — A Minnesota man bought a Mega Millions ticket during a stop for gas in Black Hawk County and won $10,000.
Wesley VanVickle, 51, of Blaine, Minn., was on a road trip with his family to visit family in Iowa when they stopped for gas and a snack at Pilot Travel Center, 445 Evansdale Drive in Evansdale.
"When we were walking out, I said to my wife, 'Do you have any cash on you?'" VanVickle said on Monday as he claimed his prize at the Iowa Lottery's Mason City regional office. "She said, 'Yeah, I have 5 bucks.' I said, 'OK, we're going to buy two Mega Millions (tickets) because it seems like random places where people win.'"
The morning after the drawing, VanVickle, an assistant fire chief in Minneapolis, pulled up the winning numbers online and checked his tickets. That's when he realized he'd matched four of five white balls and the Mega Ball on one of his easy-pick plays to win $10,000. He also noticed he was one number away from winning that night's $1.35 billion jackpot.
"It was definite excitement in the air, along with that little bit of disappointment that you were just one number off," he said.
The winning numbers in Friday's drawing were 11-30-45-52-56 and Mega Ball 20. The Megaplier®, an optional $1 add-on which multiples non-jackpot prize amounts by up to five times, was 2.
No one won the jackpot in Friday's Mega Millions drawing, so the estimated jackpot for Tuesday stands at a record $1.58 billion.
VanVickle said he and his wife, Sara, haven't yet made any plans for the winnings, but are thinking about putting them toward a vacation.
Players in $2 Mega Millions choose their first five numbers from a pool of 70, and another number - called the Mega Ball - from a separate pool of 25.
For more information about Mega Millions, visit www.ialottery.com.
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