Bruce Schaffer of Marlton was driving to the shore to enjoy a sunny summer day when he saw that the Mega Millions jackpot was over $500 million for the upcoming Tuesday, July 24 drawing.
The staggering jackpot caught his eye and he knew he had to get in the game for his chance to win. So, Bruce stopped by Winslow Citgo on 172 Route 73, Braddock in Camden County, a NJ Lottery retailer, and purchased $10 worth of Mega Millions on a ticket for the drawing.
When Bruce found out nobody in New Jersey hit the jackpot for that July 24th drawing, he didn’t bother to check his ticket and just left it in his wallet for the following five days, during which he took a few more trips to the shore, to work, and to go on other errands.
Later that week, Bruce checked the ticket and was astonished to realize his ticket for the July 24th drawing matched five out of the five white balls drawn on that date, missing only the Gold Mega Ball. Bruce was ecstatic just thinking that the ticket sitting in his wallet over all those days had just earned him a prize of $1,000,000! He didn’t wait … he quickly went to the New Jersey Lottery Headquarters in Lawrenceville to validate his $1,000,000 winning ticket.
It may have taken a few days for Bruce to realize he had won $1,000,000, but he quickly determined he will use most of the money for retirement planning and setting some aside to spoil his grandchildren.