‘Started shaking all over.’ NC dad hits ‘life-changing’ top prize in new lottery game.

A Gastonia dad stopped at a convenience store for a drink on Tuesday when something told him to buy a ticket in a new scratch-off game, too, lottery officials said Saturday.

He’s glad he did, as he hit the top $250,000 prize in the $5 20X The Cash game that debuted the same day, according to a lottery news release.

Gastonia resident Joshua Ramsey beat odds of about 1 in 1.3 million, according to the 20X The Cash game page on NC Lottery.com.

“This is life-changing for us,” Ramsey said when he claimed his prize at lottery headquarters in Raleigh on Friday. “I’m going to buy my family a home.”

When Ramsey went to Mike’s Food Store on South York Road in Gastonia for the drink, “something was just telling me to get that ticket.,” he said. “I’m sure glad I did.”

Ramsey won the first top prize in the game and said he “was absolutely blown away” by the amount he won.

“I started shaking all over,” he said. “It’s one of those experiences you’ll never forget.” Ramsey said his sister and his son “were both just over the moon ecstatic” when he called them.

After taxes, he took home $178,751, according to the lottery. He said he’ll also consider buying a car.

His win trimmed the number of top prizes available in the game to nine.

This story was originally published February 10, 2024, 2:51 PM.