BALTIMORE, Md. – A Baltimore man who rarely plays the lottery struck gold with his first-ever scratch-off ticket, winning a $100,000 top prize on the Maryland Lottery’s $100,000 Crossword 8th Edition game.
The winner, who was grocery shopping with friends at Omega Grocery & Market, initially had no plans to play until a friend’s uncle encouraged him to buy a ticket. “He told me to play anyway,” the man recalled. “I didn’t even know how to play it.”
After purchasing the ticket, he attempted to scan it at the store, but a scanning error left him unsure of the result. He took the ticket home, scratched it off, and later realized—after checking with friends—that he had matched 10 words, securing the game’s top prize.
“I had to step outside for a minute,” he said after confirming the win at a second Lottery retailer. “I don’t normally freak out, but I did this time.”
The winner, who plans to save his winnings, bought the lucky ticket at Omega Grocery & Market, which will receive a $1,000 bonus from the Maryland Lottery for selling a top-prize scratch-off.
The unexpected win turned a routine grocery trip into a life-changing moment.