Lottery

Lottery ticket worth $1 million sold at a Florida gas station. Here’s where

A Florida Lottery player turned $50 into a life-changing prize, officials said.
A Florida Lottery player turned $50 into a life-changing prize, officials said. Getty Images

A Florida lottery player netted a life-changing prize after a trip to RaceTrac.

Gail Riola, 67, of North Port, won $1 million on a 500X THE CASH Scratch-Off game, the Florida Lottery said in a Nov. 13 news release.

She bought the lucky ticket at the RaceTrac on Tamiami Trail in North Port, officials said. The gas station received a $2,000 commission for selling the winning ticket.

Riola claimed her winnings at the Lottery’s Fort Myers District Office, choosing a lump sum payment of $640,000, after taxes, the release said.

The lucky player beat odds of 1 in 274,004 to win the game’s second-tier prize, according to the lottery’s website. Two top prizes worth an estimated $25 million remained in the 500X THE CASH Scratch-Off game as of Nov. 13.

Riola didn’t say how she plans to spend her winnings.

North Port is about a 90-mile drive south from Tampa.

Many people can gamble or play games of chance without harm. However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.

If you or a loved one shows signs of gambling addiction, you can seek help by calling the national gambling hotline at 1-800-522-4700 or visiting the National Council on Problem Gambling website.

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Tanasia Kenney
Sun Herald
Tanasia is a service journalism reporter at the Charlotte Observer | CharlotteFive, working remotely from Atlanta, Georgia. She covers restaurant openings/closings in Charlotte and statewide explainers for the NC Service Journalism team. She’s been with McClatchy since 2020.
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