5,000 Lottery Winners to Share $2M Reward in Unexpected Turn

Any lottery winner who has just won $2 million would be happy about their luck – sure, someone else might have won too, but this is no big deal, as you can split the reward, gladly. A third person won, though, and this begins to look a little anti-climactic by now, but a fourth or even a fifth co-winner?

Thousands of North Carolina Residents Win from the Lottery Game

The happiness deflates from the original winner as quickly as it has come over. What then to think and how to feel about finding out that you are going to share your lottery award with 5,000 other people?

This is precisely what happened in North Carolina where 5,420 lottery players though they were the only ones to have thought of the original three-number combination – 0 – 0 – 0 – oops. They weren’t, with the Carolina Pick 3 draw on April 26 producing the winning numbers for thousands of people.

Lottery officials noted that while this looked a little unorthodox at first glance, having just three numbers to make winning combinations made it possible for a lot of people to hit the same winning numbers. Winners will now be getting only $370 – oh, but there is also tax to be paid.

“Combinations of three of the same numbers, known as ‘trips,’ are some of the most popular sets of numbers played. Whatever three numbers you pick, the odds of matching exactly all three in a Pick 3 drawing are the same: 1 in 1,000,” a lottery official told the press.

Nevertheless, the winners now have about 180 days to claim their cash. The game, as its name suggests, will ask players to pick three numbers from 0 to 9, which understandably limits the available choices.

Winners Have 180 Days to Leg It and Get About $260 After Tax

However, to avoid an inundation of winners, the North Carolina Lottery has introduced one clever condition – the winners ought to not only get the numbers but the numbers in the right order, which surely thins the field, but if you are one of those 5,420 winners, apparently not enough.

With nothing else to do, some winners may choose to forfeit their reward, which is not to say that the other winners would benefit. If you are one of the people to have won in North Carolina, you can still claim your reward and receive about $260 after tax, which is plenty of money to cover gas costs.