Ohio couple gets ‘goosebumps’ after big Kentucky KENO lottery win

LEXINGTON, Ky. ( FOX 56 ) — An Ohio couple must be very happy about their trip to the Bluegrass in September, as they left with a winning Keno ticket.

The Kentucky Lottery said Steven Green and his wife Wendy, of Alexandria, Ohio, spend a lot of time at Lake Cumberland on their houseboat.  During a recent trip, they stopped at Wings and Rings in Somerset and played Keno while dining.

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He told officials he had been playing the same 10 numbers for a while, a combination of significant birthdays and ages of his wife and kids, but he decided to change it up. He bought a $5 ticket instead of the $10 one.

A good choice; after watching the lottery machine, they realized they had matched some of their numbers.

“Oh my god, we hit a lot of numbers on this one,” his wife said.  Once the drawing was complete, they handed the ticket to the bartender to check.  “She scanned it, but it gave them the message, ‘See KLC Corp, prize exceeds cashing limit,’” Steve said.

The ticket matched 10 of the 20 numbers on the Sept. 12 Keno drawing to win the game’s $100,000 top prize.

“I know it’s big but don’t know how much,” Steve told officials.  So, he scanned the ticket on the lottery’s vending machine when $100,000 displayed on the screen.

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“I kind of yelled $100,000,” he said.  “I had goosebumps.  It took about 10-15 minutes for it to sink in.”

Steve shared the exciting news with his wife.  “No way,” she said.  “She started crying, I started crying. Then there was hugging,” Steve said.

The couple drove to Kentucky Lottery headquarters the next day, where Steve received a $72,000 check after taxes.

Steve said the winnings will go to helping the couple retire in a couple of years.

Wings and Rings will receive $1,000 for selling the winning ticket.

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