An Arkansas man hit a $100,000 payday after buying a $5 scratch-off ticket while heading back to work from his lunch break.
Thomas McCawley of Tontitown said he picked up a Fiery 5’s instant ticket at Tontitown Z-Mart Inc., 441 W. Henri De Tonti Blvd., according to My Arkansas Lottery. McCawley told lottery officials the store is owned by a family friend.
“I just had a hunch,” McCawley said. “I guess you could say it just spoke to me.”
McCawley didn’t even scratch the ticket right away. He waited until he was back at his job — and then got the shock of his life. The first row revealed he’d won a $100,000 top prize.
“This can’t be real,” he said he thought in the moment.
“It was really hard to go back to work after that,” McCawley added with a laugh.
He later claimed the prize at the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery (ASL) Claim Center.
McCawley immediately contacted his wife and other family members, who didn’t believe it until he showed them the ticket.
He told lottery officials he plans to use the money to buy a wheelchair–accessible vehicle for his mother-in-law.
One $100,000 top prize still remains in the Fiery 5’s game, according to My Arkansas Lottery.
