Michigan Man’s Road Trip Tradition Suddenly Pays $2 Million

A Mackinac County man's longtime road-trip ritual has turned into a $2 million payday.

A Simple Road-Trip Tradition Pays Off

For years, the 27-year-old Northern Michigan resident has stopped to buy a Michigan Lottery ticket before hitting the road. The simple routine paid off in a life-changing way when he scratched his way to a $2 million prize playing the Michigan Lottery's Two Million Dollar Cashword instant game.

'Do People Ever Actually Win These?'

“Every time I go on a road trip with family or friends, I buy a Two Million Dollar Cashword ticket to scratch on the drive,” said the lucky player. “I was in Sault Sainte Marie with a friend, and we were getting ready to head home, so I stopped and got my ticket per usual. As I was getting in the car I said to my friend: ‘Do you think people ever actually win on these?’

The lucky player, who has chosen to remain anonymous, found out firsthand that people actually win on instant scratch-off tickets.

He Thought He'd Won $10,000

“I scratched the ticket during the drive and didn’t realize until I was done scratching how many words I’d uncovered. I counted nine words a few times, so I thought I’d won $10,000 until I found a tenth word a few minutes later. When I realized I’d actually won $2 million, I’ll be honest, I cried like a baby! It still feels like a dream.”

The player bought his winning ticket at the Meijer gas station in Sault Sainte Marie. With his winnings, he plans to take a vacation to Hawaii and invest.

Everyone has a road-trip ritual. For this Mackinac County man, a quick stop for a scratch-off ticket turned an ordinary drive home into a $2 million memory.