Michael Snipes from Pender County said he’s still in shock after winning $150,000 in Saturday’s Powerball drawing.
The volunteer firefighter from Burgaw said his hands were shaking as he checked his tickets.
“I was in nervous shock”, he said. “I called my wife and told her, ‘You won’t believe it, I think we hit something big here.’”
Snipes and his wife Laurie claimed the prize Monday at lottery headquarters in Raleigh. She said when her husband called she told him he “better not be lying.”
After required state and federal tax withholdings, Snipes received $103,875. He plans to use the money to pay bills and take his family to Disney.
Snipes bought the winning ticket at the Freshway Food Mart on U.S. 117 in Rocky Point.
Ashley Cook from Clayton also claimed a $150,000 Powerball prize today. She bought her winning ticket at the Hasty Mart on N.C. 42 in Clayton.
Both players bought $3 Power Play tickets. They matched four of the five white balls and the red Powerball. The prize tripled from $50,000 to $150,000 when the 3x multiplier was drawn for Power Play tickets.
In all, Saturday’s drawing resulted in four winning tickets worth $150,000 and five tickets worth $50,000.
Wednesday’s jackpot has reached $1.4 billion with an estimated lump sum of $868 million.
Ticket sales from games like Powerball helped the lottery raise more than half a billion dollars for the state last year. A sale of a $2 Powerball ticket raises about 76 cents for education.
