We all dream of having it big in the lottery, so when new scratch-offs get announced that feature some of the most beloved topics in the state, we tend to try to purchase them in the hopes that they’ll bring us a little bit of luck. Much was the Feeling when the Detroit Lions and the Michigan lottery decided to team up to deliver Detroit Lions scratch-off tickets in late 2024.

Since then those scratch-offs have produced more than 21 million winnings with a maximum chance of winning $500,000. That’s exactly what one 25-year-old Indiana woman recently cashed in on during a white elephant gift exchange with her family over the holidays.

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Emily Hickox was the lucky winner of a $500,000 Detroit Lions scratch-off, as she explained the gathering to the Michigan Lottery:

My cousin purchased the ticket for the white elephant gift exchange at our family Christmas party. My dad actually won the ticket in the gift exchange, and I won the gift he brought, a flashlight. He wanted his gift back, so we made an agreement after the game to trade gifts.

She went on to describe how she originally thought she had only won $50,000, but was gladly mistaken:

I scratched the ticket off on Christmas, which also happens to be my birthday, and thought I won $50,000. I downloaded the Michigan Lottery app and created an account to check the ticket on the app scanner. I was expecting to see $50,000, so when I saw the extra zero, I was speechless! I couldn’t comprehend that I’d just won $500,000!

Rumor is, that her dad can currently be found crying in the shower, eating chocolate.

Lottery Commissioner Suzanna Shkreli also gave a comment expressing her excitement that someone hit the Gridiron golden ticket:

We love hearing all of the fun and exciting ways our players find out they’ve won big prizes, and a win like this is what every Lottery player dreams of! Winning a prize of $500,000 is a thrill in itself, combined with the excitement of winning on Christmas, and your birthday, from a ticket you received as a gift makes it even more incredible. Congratulations Emily!

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Gallery Credit: RODD Modern Design

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Gallery Credit: Wikipedia/Canva

 

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