April O'Neil / news@WHMI.com

A newly married Livingston County man won $1 million after purchasing a winning scratch-off ticket in northern Michigan.

Below is the official press released from the Michigan Lottery:



A Livingston County man went from hearing wedding bells to seeing dollar signs when he won $1 million the day after his wedding playing the Michigan Lottery’s Diamond & Pearls instant game.

The 57-year-old player, who chose to remain anonymous, bought his winning ticket at Prudenville E-Z Mart, located at 2403 West Houghton Lake Drive in Prudenville. Prudenville is about 30 miles south of Grayling.

“I bought the ticket the day after my wedding and gave it to my wife to scratch,” the player said. “When she revealed the ‘$1 MIL’ prize amount, we were in disbelief. We kept reading the instructions over and over again to make sure we really won. It was an exciting couple of days for us!”

The lucky player recently visited Lottery headquarters to claim the big prize. He chose to receive his prize as a one-time lump sum payment of about $693,000, rather than annuity payments for the full amount. He plans to invest his winnings.

Players have won more than $14 million playing Diamonds & Pearls, which launched in August. Each $10 ticket offers players a chance to win prizes ranging from $10 up to $1 million. More than $37 million in prizes remain, including two $1 million top prizes and 18 $2,000 prizes.

In 2022, Lottery players won more than $1.7 billion playing instant games.

Lottery instant games may be purchased at any of the 10,500 retailers across the state.