A little extra money in his Michigan Lottery account led a Muskegon County man to the win of a lifetime as he brought home a $751,265 Fantasy 5 jackpot recently.
“I saw the Fantasy 5 jackpot was growing and I had $21 in my Lottery account, so I bought three $5 tickets,” said 78-year-old William Chamberlain Jr.
“I logged in to my account the next day and saw a message about claiming my prize.
When I saw that my account balance was $751,265, I thought there was an issue with my account.
“I told my wife that something had to be going on with my account because of the balance it was showing.
When I called the Lottery office Monday, I started shaking when they confirmed that I had won the jackpot.”
Chamberlain matched all five white numbers drawn -- 01-06-26-28-29 -- for the drawing on Aug. 12 to win the jackpot.
He visited Lottery headquarters in Lansing recently to claim his prize. He plans on using the money to pay bills and save the remainder.
“I haven’t stopped shaking or been able to sleep since I won, it still doesn’t seem real,” Chamberlain said.
For the latest on Michigan Lottery, check out the official Michigan Lottery site, which also offers more information on instant tickets, raffles and other lottery games.
The last players from Michigan to win a Mega Millions or Powerball jackpot is the Wolverine FLL lottery club which claimed a $1.05 billion jackpot in March 2021.
With their winnings, the group plans to give back to the community.
And while they were lucky winners, it’s smart for players to check their tickets immediately as a winner worth $1 million sold in Warren last year went unclaimed.
The money instead went to the state’s School Aid Fund.