Decades of consistent play results in record Arizona Lottery win
RELEASE DATE: 6/18/2020
PHOENIX - A married couple in Glendale, Arizona, is taking home close to a quarter of a billion dollars, choosing the lump-sum cash option for their jackpot-winning Mega Millions ticket.
The $414 million winning ticket was sold at a Circle K, located at 20203 N. 67th Ave. in Glendale. The cash option is worth $319.9 million, less approximately $76.8 million in federal taxes and $15.3 million to the state of Arizona, for an estimated payout of $227.8 million to these lucky players. The couple is choosing to remain permanently anonymous, under a state law enacted last year.
The multi-draw ticket, sold on May 27, matched all six numbers in the Tuesday, June 9 Mega Millions drawing, winning the 11th largest jackpot in the game’s history and the largest single payout to any Arizona Lottery player ever! Circle K, our valued retail partner, is also receiving a $50,000 sales incentive from the Arizona Lottery for selling the winning ticket, which they have pledged to donate to their charity of choice, United Cerebral Palsy of Central Arizona.
“We are so excited to see this couple claim our first-ever Mega Millions jackpot,” said Gregg Edgar, Arizona Lottery Executive Director. “The Arizona Lottery is all about doing more good in our state and making dreams come true for our players. I’m sure this amazing prize will go a long way toward helping make this couple’s dreams a reality and inspiring many other Arizonans to dream bigger while doing good for Arizona.”
Though this Glendale couple wants to remain anonymous, they are happy to share their winning story. He is 70, and she is 63, and they have been playing the lottery regularly for the past 38 years. They chose their own numbers, based on family birthdays. “My birthday is next month, and my left hand had been itching for two weeks, which meant money was coming my way,” she says. “I also found a shiny new headsp-up penny just before I bought our tickets, so I just knew I’d be lucky.”
She says that, when she checked her numbers and saw that she had won, she began yelling, “Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God!”, and ran through the house to tell her husband, who says he still can’t believe they won.
“It’s an amazing feeling, and this is proof that you can't win if you don’t play,” he says. “I feel lighter now and it’s incredible to know that there will never be another bill that I can’t pay.” He says they always looked at their lottery play like another bill for their entertainment, “You can’t take it with you so you might as well have fun.”
Now that they’ve won, the couple plans to pay off their mortgage, set aside enough money to provide for their children and grandchildren, and invest and enjoy the rest.
Though this win is enormous, it is just one of thousands of Arizona Lottery wins that are paid out to our players every week with our instant and draw games, our second chance Players Club (available for free on the iTunes® App Store and Google Play™) promotions, and our regular Facebook livestreams where no purchase is necessary to tune in and win!
It’s also important to remember that this lucky couple is not the only winner, as every Arizona Lottery ticket sold helps fund more than a dozen vital programs across the state, including health, housing and job assistance for the homeless; support for Arizona’s foster children; funding to nurture and grow our state’s economy in a pandemic-challenged environment; and monies to augment efforts to preserve and protect Arizona’s iconic wildlife and habitats.
Arizona Lottery tickets are available at over 3,000 retail locations across the state. Players have 180 days to redeem their winning tickets and must sign the back of their winning tickets to ensure that no one else can claim their prize. Winners should consult with a financial advisor before claiming their prize.
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About Arizona Lottery
Since 1981, the Arizona Lottery and its retail partners have generated more than $4.3 billion in net funding in support of programs that help to improve the quality of life for the people of Arizona. Proceeds from Lottery ticket sales fund programs in higher education, economic development, environmental conservation and health and human services. The mission is to support Arizona programs for the public benefit by maximizing net revenue in a responsible manner. Learn more at
ArizonaLottery.com.
Media contact: John Turner Gilliland, Arizona Lottery, (480) 921-4438