Regular player "almost passed out"

By Kate Northrop

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — A Connecticut lottery player thought he struck gold when he won $100,000 playing Cash 5 over the summer, but just a few short months later, he'd be looking an even larger $1 million prize square in the eye.

A lottery regular was treated to an even bigger win when he won a $1 million prize on a scratch-off ticket, dwarfing his $100,000 Cash 5 win from earlier this year.

Shelley Suttles was having a day like any other, running errands and picking up a few things he needed. When he stopped at Grand Package Store on Main Street in Bridgeport, he decided to purchase a $10 "Ultimate 7s" scratch-off game.

Little did he know he would be picking out the last and final $1 million top prize to end the game.

"I almost passed out," Suttles told the Connecticut Lottery. "I scratched off the box and saw a million dollars. I've never seen a million dollars on a ticket before."

When he visited Lottery headquarters in Wallingford, it wasn't the first time that year that Lottery staff had the pleasure of awarding him a big prize. Just this summer, he won a $100,000 prize in Cash 5, one of Connecticut's in-state draw games.

"I picked up the phone and told my sister, and she started screaming," Suttles recalled after winning $1 million this time. "She couldn't believe it either."

Suttles said he's a regular lottery fan who enjoys the experience of playing. With the winnings, he plans on paying off bills and donating to his church.

For selling the winning ticket, the retailer received a $10,000 bonus from the Lottery.

Since Suttles won the third and final top prize in the $10 "Ultimate 7s" instant game, the Lottery discontinued the game. All winning tickets belonging to this game, including other available major prizes, must be validated no later than March 29, 2026.

The overall odds of winning any prize in the game are 1 in 3.47.

(Click to display full-size in gallery)Connecticut has found a two-time lottery winner in Bridgeport resident Shelley Suttles, who has won over $1 million in lottery prizes this year.