Those numbers might come in handy someday

By Kate Northrop

AURORA, Ill. — An Illinois lottery player rediscovered an old, forgotten lottery ticket sitting in his drawer and decided to repurpose them for another Powerball drawing, winning a $1 million prize.

An Illinois resident wasn't about to pass up the chance to play for a billion-dollar lottery jackpot, so he dug out an old ticket from his drawer and decided to put it to use.

The winner, who calls himself "Rex" to Illinois Lottery staff, doesn't usually lean towards Powerball for his regular play, but a billion-dollar jackpot earlier this month caught his eye.

"I usually play Lotto, but this time I found an old Powerball ticket in the drawer and figured I'd give those numbers another try," the anonymous player told the Illinois Lottery. "The jackpot was so high — over a billion dollars! I figured I wouldn't get too many chances at that kind of money."

The Sept. 3 Powerball drawing offered  a $1.4 billion jackpot, which would later increase to $1.8 billion and go on to be won by two tickets — one in Texas, and the other in Missouri.

"Rex" took the numbers from his old ticket and visited Joe's Tobacco and Vape & Phone Repair Shop on West Galena Boulevard in Aurora.

"I woke up the next day after the drawing, had my second cup of coffee, and suddenly remembered to check the numbers," they recalled. "It took a whole day to sink in. I triple-checked my ticket and even scanned it at the store where I bought it. I barely slept that night — my blood pressure was through the roof!"

"Rex's" old, non-winning ticket had proved to be useful after all. The numbers he repurposed had matched all five white ball numbers in the Sept. 3 drawing, which were 3, 16, 29, 61, and 69, winning him the game's $1 million second-tier prize. Had he matched the red Powerball number 22, he would have been the sole $1.4 billion jackpot winner and ended the jackpot run right then and there.

For selling the winning ticket, the retailer received a $10,000 bonus from the Lottery, or 1% of the prize amount.

"I showed the winning numbers to my spouse, who couldn't believe it and immediately said, 'Wow,  you actually won!'" "Rex" recalled in a press release.

"Rex" claimed his prize from the Lottery last week, and since they've been a lifelong car enthusiast with a passion dating back to the 1960's, they plan on using the winnings to purchase a new car. They'll also give some thoughtful gifts to loved ones, they added.

According to the Lottery, eight lucky Illinois players have won prizes of $1 million or more in Powerball.

The next Powerball annuity jackpot estimate for the drawing on Monday, Sept. 29 currently stands at $160 million.

Powerball is currently offered for sale in 45 states, plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Drawings are Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays at 10:59 p.m. Eastern Time. Tickets cost $2 each.

Powerball lottery results are published within minutes of the drawing at USA Mega (www.usamega.com). The USA Mega website provides lottery players in-depth information about the United States' two biggest multi-state lottery games, Mega Millions and Powerball.

(Click to display full-size in gallery)"Rex" used the numbers from an old, forgotten lottery ticket sitting in his drawer and won a $1 million prize.