‘Plant Emergency’ Leads to $100,000 Scratchers Prize

Jul. 15, 2024

On the way to her sister’s house to get help with a dying house plant, a Missouri Lottery player stopped at Phillips 66, 7323 N. Lindbergh Blvd., in Hazelwood. The unplanned pit stop ended with a $100,000 Scratchers top prize.

“I was going to her house because I was going to kill that plant,” the winner joked. “So, I just randomly stopped at the gas station.”

While there, she purchased a “$100,000 Cash Payout” Scratchers ticket and scratched it off in her car right away.  

“I was shocked!” she said. “I actually got lost on the way to her house! I had to call her because I didn’t believe what just happened.”

She added that she already has plans for the money, including a family vacation.

“I’m going to surprise my kids with a trip to a theme park they’ve wanted to go to,” she said.

In FY23, players in St. Louis County won more than $207.7 million in Missouri Lottery prizes, retailers received more than $20 million in commissions and bonuses, and more than $76 million in Lottery proceeds went to education programs in the county.