Woman wagers $1 and walks away with largest instant-win lottery prize in KY history
One Northeastern Kentucky woman struck gold when she won the largest instant-win prize in the Kentucky Lottery’s online history.
Angela Ryan won more than $504,000 May 13 through the Kentucky Lottery’s Clusters Jackpot online game. She won the game’s progressive jackpot on a $1 wager, the lottery said in a Tuesday press release.
“I placed the bet and saw the hearts go up on the screen,” she told lottery officials. “I thought it was only going to be a $20 or $30 win.”
Angela’s husband, Reece, said his wife woke him up after winning the instant-win game’s jackpot.
“She came in screaming, crying and then laughing,” Reece told lottery officials. “I wasn’t sure what was going on, but we haven’t really slept since Saturday.”
The couple quickly visited the Kentucky Lottery’s office to verify their winnings. In the end, they walked away with a check for $360,386.86 after taxes.
Angela told Kentucky Lottery officials the historic win carried some extra meaning when it fell just before Mother’s Day.
“It was special,” said Angela, who told lottery officials she recently lost her mother. “I was thinking of her and thought, ‘I’m going to win this.’”
Married for more than 30 years, Angela and Reece hope to use their winnings to travel across the country. The couple owns a pair of food truck businesses and now plans to expand after paying off some outstanding debts.
“You guys totally changed our lives,” Reece told lottery officials.
Cleopatra Clusters tasks players with combining sets of three or more matching tiles to win a prize. In-game actions can result in bonus prizes, free turns and more.
Through a $1 entry, the chances of winning the game’s progressive jackpot are roughly 1 in 5 million, according to Cleopatra Custers’ official rules. Each jackpot starts at $100,000.
Help is available in Kentucky for those struggling with gambling.
If you or someone you know has a problem with gambling, help is available by calling 1-800-522-4700.
