ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — A Buncombe County man is sending his family on a cruise after winning a $100,000 jackpot in the North Carolina Education Lottery’s Cash 5 game.
Raymond Vail Jr., of Alexander, bought the winning ticket at the Fastrac Food Mart on Old Leicester Highway in Asheville and discovered his prize after checking the numbers on the lottery’s website.
“Holy smokes, I just won $100,000,” Vail said he told himself.
Vail, who plays Cash 5 once or twice a week — usually at the same store — matched all five numbers in a drawing last month.
“It doesn’t feel real,” he said in a news release from the North Carolina Education Lottery.
He claimed his prize at lottery headquarters in Raleigh, receiving $71,752 after required state and federal tax withholdings.
According to the North Carolina Education Lottery website, Vail said he plans to use the money to pay bills, finish building a pool and treat his family to a cruise vacation.
The odds of winning a Cash 5 jackpot are 1 in 962,598, according to the lottery.
Cash 5 is one of six lottery games offered in North Carolina, and tickets can be purchased at retail locations or through the NC Lottery’s website and mobile app.