You are here

Laundromat Sells $122M Powerball Lottery Ticket

CATSKILL, N.Y. — Someone really cleaned up at the Clothespin Laundromat here. A Powerball player recently hit a $122 million jackpot on a ticket purchased at the store. The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot were 1 in 195 million, according to a New York Lottery spokesperson.
The winner has just come forward, however, his identity won’t be revealed until the lottery holds a press conference. Lottery jackpot winners are required by New York law to have a press conference and photo shoot to announce their winnings.
Clothespin Laundromat is the first Laundromat statewide to offer lottery tickets, says Bhasu Patel, the store owner. The New York Lottery is encouraging Laundromats to carry lottery vending machines or have an attendant on hand to sell the tickets.
Despite some rumors, Patel says he does not know the name of the Powerball winner.
Patel says there are often winners of smaller amounts who play scratch-offs or other lottery games at his store — with one gambler taking home $45,000 in one purchase — but there has never been a jackpot of such magnitude there.
New York began participating in the Powerball drawing — which now includes 42 states plus Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands — in January 2010, with the first drawing being held Feb. 3, 2010.
The winner has the option to choose a lump sum of cash valued at less than the $122,100,000 jackpot, or receive annuity payments over 30 years that will equal the full prize amount.
Patel will also benefit from having sold the ticket. In addition to giving retailers 6% of all ticket sales, the New York Lottery offers a $10,000 bonus to those who sell a Powerball or Mega Millions top-prize-winning jackpot ticket.
 

Lottery balls

Lottery balls. (Photo: ©iStockphoto.com/Marina_Ph)

Have a question or comment? E-mail our editor Bruce Beggs at [email protected].