Man wins $400,000 lottery payout after store employee makes huge mistake
Callum Jones
Featured Image Credit: Brandon Bell/Getty Images/Michigan Lottery Connect
Your chances of winning the lottery is a disappointing one in 45 million, so highly unlikely any of us will win a massive fortune in our lifetime.
However, for one lucky man, an unfortunate blunder from a store clerk left him a very rich man.
Michael Sopejstal, 60, was making his regular trip to his favorite restaurant across the Michigan border.
But while Sopejstal was enjoying a bit of grub, he thought he'd take his chances and have a go on the Wolverine State drawing, according to lottery officials.
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When he's in New Buffalo, Sopejstal typically plays ten or 20 draws in the Michigan Lucky For Life Lottery, though that switched up on the Michigan border due to no fault of his own.
"I come to Michigan every few weeks to eat at my favorite restaurant and I always get a Lucky for Life ticket for 10 or 20 draws while I’m here,” said Sopejstal.
"I asked the retailer for a ticket for 10 draws, but he accidentally printed a ticket with 10 lines for one draw, but I told him I still wanted it."
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The five white balls drawn on 17 September this year were: 11-15-17-24-48. And did the ticket he bought at GoLo gas station match these numbers? You bet ya.
"I checked my ticket one morning and saw that I had won $25,000 a year for life," Sopejstal added.
"I immediately started thinking about all the things I could do with the money and whether I wanted to take the lump sum or annuity option. It was an amazing feeling!"
While the draw may have took place in September, Sopejstal apparently only visited the Lottery headquarters 'recently'.
He could have claimed $25,000 a year for the rest of his life, but the Illinois man instead decided to accept a one-time lump sum payment of $390,000.
The press release did not detail if the guilty store clerk got a tip for his blunder - a thought that certainly wouldn't come as a surprise given the amount Sopejstal has won.
If you fancy testing your luck just like Sopejstal did, the Lottery says: "To win the game’s top prize of $1,000 a day for life, players must match all five winning numbers ranging from 1 to 48, plus one Lucky Ball ranging from 1 to 18. Players who match all five winning numbers, but not the Lucky Ball, will win $25,000 a year for life. Drawings take place at 10:38 p.m. seven days-a-week."