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A man in North Carolina is celebrating a "wonderful" lottery win after a lucky ticket scored him a $100,000 prize.
Dennis Francis, of Gastonia, recently tried his hand at the lottery, purchasing a $3 Powerball Power Play ticket using Online Play on the state lottery's website, according to a release from the NC Education Lottery. Drawing inspiration from his birthday, he picked the numbers specifically for the ticket, which turned out to be the best move as he matched the numbers on four of the white balls as well as the Powerball in the August 20 drawing to win $50,000. Thanks to the 2X Power Play multiplier, his prize doubled to $100,000.
"I was like, 'Wow, this is wonderful,'" he said.
Francis couldn't wait to tell his wife about the win, rushing to her side as she slept to wake her up.
"I said, 'Wake up, I just won $100,000,'" he recalled, adding his wife's initial reaction to the news. "She said, 'You're lying,' so I showed her the numbers and she work straight up."
Francis claimed his prize at lottery headquarters on Friday (August 26), bringing home a grand total of $71,049 after required state and federal tax withholdings. When asked what he plans to do with his new winnings, he told lottery officials he hopes to pay off his car and put away the rest for to save for an emergency.
"It's nice now to have some extra dollars in case of emergency," he said.