Stubborn 22-Year Bet Beats 1-in-13.98-Million Odds... Same Numbers Finally Win $5.1 Million Lotto

Receives $1.28 Million in Lump Sum
Odds of Winning Reach 1 in 13.98 Million

A man in Ohio, United States, who had been buying lottery tickets with the same numbers for 22 years, has finally hit the jackpot in the Classic Lotto.

On the 16th (local time), according to local station WKYC, the man won the first prize of $3.5 million (about 5.1 billion won, based on the annuity option) in a recent drawing. The numbers he has kept for 22 years were 6, 8, 16, 20, 26, and 45. The winning ticket was sold on Brown Street in Akron, and it was reported that a friend purchased the ticket with the same numbers on his behalf while he was away from home.

According to a WKYC report on the 16th (local time), the man won the top prize of $3.5 million (about KRW 5.1 billion if taken as an annuity) in a recent drawing. The numbers he had played for 22 years were 6, 8, 16, 20, 26 and 45. The photo is not related to the specific content of the article. Pixabay.

The man has been living a so-called “snowbird” lifestyle, spending winters in warmer regions, yet continued to buy lottery tickets every month for $10. When he was away from home, he asked a friend to buy tickets with the same numbers. He said that when he checked the results of the drawing held on the 4th, he immediately recognized his numbers. After informing his wife of the win, he boarded a plane home and personally collected the ticket that his friend had been keeping.

The man chose the lump-sum payment option instead of the annuity and decided to receive $1.7 million. After tax withholding, the actual amount he will receive is $1,281,875 (about 1.86 billion won). Following his win, he officially announced his retirement and said he plans to buy a new house and build a large swimming pool and a home gym. When asked why he continued to buy tickets with the same numbers for years despite only winning small prizes, he replied that it was because he is “stubborn.” According to the Ohio Lottery Commission, the odds of winning the first prize in the Classic Lotto are 1 in 13,983,816.

Cases like this, where someone sticks with the same numbers for a long time and eventually wins, often attract attention overseas. Previously, a man in Maryland, United States, made headlines after winning several million dollars with numbers he had used for more than 30 years. He said, “Not changing the numbers was the biggest strategy.” In the United Kingdom, a couple who had been buying tickets with the same numbers via automatic payment for more than 20 years also hit a jackpot worth tens of millions of pounds. They said, “The secret was never missing a single draw.”

It is known that they combined family birthdays or meaningful dates and kept those numbers for years. However, as in the earlier cases, keeping specific numbers for a long time does not statistically increase the odds of winning. Each drawing is conducted independently, so the probability remains the same every time.

In Lotto 6/45, operated by Donghaeng Lottery in Korea, there have also been several publicly known cases where people won first prize after using the same numbers for a long period. Some winners are known to have combined family birthdays or meaningful dates and kept those numbers for years. However, as in the earlier cases, keeping specific numbers for a long time does not statistically increase the odds of winning. Each drawing is conducted independently, so the probability remains the same every time.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.