CUMBERLAND — There was a lot of lottery luck flowing through Cumberland last week.
A Cumberland resident became the second player from the city to claim a prize of $1 million or more from the Maryland Lottery.
The woman, who lottery officials did not identify, was searching for gold by playing her favorite scratch-off, the $30, $2 million Gold Rush game. She’s tried her luck since the instant ticket went on sale on February 2022 and won its last $2 million top prize.
The retired state employee said she follows a routine when she plays scratch-offs. She scratches off the player’s numbers without revealing the prizes and then compares those numbers to the winning numbers. This time, she revealed the player’s numbers and spotted an auto-win symbol.
“I saw a ‘vault’ symbol so I knew that I won something. I thought it was at least $500,” she told lottery officials.
The city resident quickly discovered the prize was a lot more than $500. When she continued to scratch off the play area, she found a $2 million prize hiding beneath the “vault” symbol. She immediately called her husband into the room.
“I ran upstairs and asked her if she won a million dollars,” her husband said, knowing she was in the middle of playing her favorite game.
“Then I told him, ‘No. I won two million dollars,” the wife explained with a huge grin.
The winner plans to give $100,000 of her prize to charity and put the rest toward home improvements. She credits her win to astrology, explaining that she decided to buy an instant ticket based on her astrology sign for Feb. 18.
“The moon was on my sign on the 18th. It was my lucky day.”
That was also a lucky day for Parkview Liquors in Cumberland. The Greene Street retailer will receive a $2,000 bonus from the lottery for selling the ticket.
The winner was the second Cumberland resident to claim a seven-figure prize on a game last week. A truck driver won $1 million on a Fast Play Monopoly Properties ticket.