Wisconsin C-Store Continues Lucky Streak
FOND DU LAC, Wis. -- When co-owner Phil Moses opened his Ma and Pa's Grocery Express on Sunday and noticed "Winning ticket in Fond du Lac County" appear on the lottery portal, he wasn't surprised to find out it was his store that sold the ticket worth $208 million, he told the Journal Sentinel.
Since the start of the lottery in the early 90s, the store has sold numerous winners, ranging from a few thousand to $500,000 in prize money, he told the newspaper. Since snagging a $6.5 million Powerball winner in 1994, the store has seen an increase in sales of the lotto's Badger Five, Powerball and Megabucks games.
The luck goes beyond the customers that frequent the store, however. "We won $138,000 ourselves when we played last year," Moses told the newspaper. Last month, an employee won $67,000 from the lotto, he added.
Besides gaining bragging rights, the store also gets a bonus equal to 2 percent of any jackpot over $599, up to $100,000 in bonus money, according to Wisconsin lottery spokeswoman Jessica Iverson.
Moses told the newspaper that before a big drawing, the store will see 15,000 to 20,000 tickets sold, but only 5,000 were sold before Saturday's $208 million jackpot.
The winners, a group of 100 Sargento employees, pooled their money to buy 100 tickets for the drawing, a tradition the employees have anytime the jackpot goes over $100 million. The group plans to consult an attorney before deciding when to turn in the winning ticket.
Since the start of the lottery in the early 90s, the store has sold numerous winners, ranging from a few thousand to $500,000 in prize money, he told the newspaper. Since snagging a $6.5 million Powerball winner in 1994, the store has seen an increase in sales of the lotto's Badger Five, Powerball and Megabucks games.
The luck goes beyond the customers that frequent the store, however. "We won $138,000 ourselves when we played last year," Moses told the newspaper. Last month, an employee won $67,000 from the lotto, he added.
Besides gaining bragging rights, the store also gets a bonus equal to 2 percent of any jackpot over $599, up to $100,000 in bonus money, according to Wisconsin lottery spokeswoman Jessica Iverson.
Moses told the newspaper that before a big drawing, the store will see 15,000 to 20,000 tickets sold, but only 5,000 were sold before Saturday's $208 million jackpot.
The winners, a group of 100 Sargento employees, pooled their money to buy 100 tickets for the drawing, a tradition the employees have anytime the jackpot goes over $100 million. The group plans to consult an attorney before deciding when to turn in the winning ticket.