North Carolina Man Couldn't Believe Lottery Win: 'Sat There Just Looking'

A man in North Carolina who recently scored a big lottery win said his wife "didn't believe" he won. In fact, he had a hard time believing it himself.

William Bridgers , of Raleigh, picked up a new $5 Game of Thrones scratch-off ticket from the Speedway on Creedmore Road, waiting until he got home to scratch the ticket. When he did, he learned he scored the game's first top prize of $200,000, according to a release from the NC Education Lottery .

"I sat there just looking at it," he said.

Even his wife didn't believe the exciting news at first, as he told lottery officials he quickly showed her the ticket much to her disbelief and shock .

"I told her, 'Do you see what I see?'" he said. "She didn't believe it."

Bridgers claimed his prize at lottery headquarters on Thursday (August 30), taking home a grand total of $143,001 after all required state and federal tax withholdings. According to lottery officials, he plans to put his prize toward doing some home renovations, an idea that has been in the works for a while.

"My wife has been wanting to do renovations in the kitchen for a long time," he said.

According to the lottery website, the Game of Thrones ticket launched earlier this month with five top prizes of $200,000. Following Bridgers' win, four prizes remain to be claimed.