Late-night lottery play helps Kentucky nurse win six-figure prize. ‘I was wide awake’

One Kentucky woman recently earned a six-figure prize while playing an online lottery game just before heading to bed.

The Anderson County woman, who told the Kentucky Lottery she wishes to remain anonymous, won a $277,183.75 jackpot in September while playing Coins of the Titans, an instant-win lottery game . In an interview with the Kentucky Lottery, the woman said she began playing the game to unwind before falling asleep.

“I’m a nurse and had just gotten done working back-to-back shifts, so I was exhausted,” she told lottery officials. “I started playing to just zone out before bed.”

Her late-night lottery play wound up producing a six-figure prize thanks to some lucky bonuses and multipliers. The woman had been playing online lottery games for years and had a hunch her late-night play would deliver a big payout.

“I saw stars coming down [in the game], so I knew it was a big win,” she said. “They kept falling, and I knew what that meant. I couldn’t believe it.”

“I was wide awake,” she added.

The woman’s excitement over the win woke her husband, who needed convincing to believe the big prize wasn’t a dream. Even the next day, the woman couldn’t believe her luck, she told lottery officials.

“I kept checking my email to make sure it was real,” she said.

The couple traveled to the Kentucky Lottery’s Louisville office Sept. 30 to collect a check for $199,572.30 after taxes. They plan to use the money to help pay off student loans and save for the future, according to a Kentucky Lottery media release.

Coins of the Titans tasks players with revealing a cluster of at least three matching symbols on a 15-tile grid. Uncovering additional symbols can score free games, bonuses, multipliers and even jackpot prizes. The game features a progressive jackpot that starts at $90,000 and increases with each purchase.

There is roughly a 1 in 3.96 overall chance of winning a prize on each Coins of the Titans play, according to the Kentucky Lottery’s game rules . Prize odds increase as players wager more on each play, with play prices ranging from 10 cents to up to $20. The odds of scoring a progressive jackpot on a 10-cent wager are roughly 1 in 75 million, but those chances bump up to 1 in 750,000 for a $20 wager.

Back in April, another Kentucky woman who asked to remain unnamed won a $280,000 jackpot playing Coins of the Titans. She and her husband left lottery headquarters with a check for more than $203,000 after taxes.

Services are available in Kentucky for those who struggle with gambling .

If you or someone you know has a problem with gambling, help is available by calling 1-800-522-4700.

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