A Maryland man known as "Jack of All Trades" had almost given up on the idea of a big Powerball win until one ticket proved otherwise.
For years, one Maryland man answered to a fitting nickname: "Jack of All Trades."
The White Marsh area resident said he spent most of his life working multiple jobs, explaining that he held two or three "or sometimes four" jobs at the same time. It became a description that followed him through the years and eventually turned into the alias he used when claiming his $50,000 Powerball prize.
After spending years playing Powerball, one ticket from the May 20th drawing finally delivered the kind of win he had always hoped to see. The prize may not be enough to retire overnight, but it did move that goal a little closer.
"That's the plan," the winner said on June 25th when he and his wife claimed the prize at Maryland Lottery headquarters in Baltimore.
Big Powerball wins always come with their own stories. Sometimes the memorable part is the celebration, or the path that led to the winning ticket. In this case, the story begins with someone who spent years balancing multiple jobs before finally seeing one Powerball ticket make a lasting difference.
The Ticket He Had to Check Twice
Even after years of playing Powerball, the winner admitted he hadn't experienced a prize quite like this.
"I've been playing for years and never hit anything big," he said.
When he checked his ticket and realized he had matched four of the first five numbers plus the Powerball, he wasn't ready to believe it just yet. Instead of celebrating right away, he handed the ticket to a store clerk and asked for another look.
The clerk's reaction came first.
"He was more excited than me," the winner said.
Even that wasn't enough to erase every bit of doubt. It wasn't until the clerk handed him a printout showing the winning amount that he was finally convinced.
One quick ticket check turned into a second opinion, followed by a printout that confirmed the numbers on the screen. A routine stop became one of the most memorable moments connected to a Powerball ticket.
One More Stop Before Heading Home
The winner and his wife didn't rush to claim the prize after discovering the ticket was worth $50,000.
Instead, they spent time reviewing the claiming process, scheduled an appointment, and arrived at Maryland Lottery headquarters a little more than a month after the drawing.
There wasn't any rush. The couple took time to understand the claiming process before making the trip to Baltimore, then kept their appointment to officially collect the prize. It added another chapter to a story that had already included a surprising ticket check, an excited store clerk, and a winning Powerball ticket worth $50,000.
That visit also brought back an unexpected memory.
Years earlier, he had made deliveries to the same Montgomery Ward building that now serves as Maryland Lottery headquarters. This visit had a very different purpose, which gave one familiar building a brand-new place in the story of his winning ticket.
The couple also spent time talking about what to do with the prize money. For now, the decision is a straightforward one. The $50,000 is going straight into the bank.
There may not be a dramatic shopping spree or an elaborate celebration attached to this Powerball story, and that's part of what makes it memorable. The winning ticket moved one goal a little closer, gave the couple something to celebrate, and turned one longtime Powerball player's persistence into a memorable $50,000 prize.
For "Jack of All Trades," the journey to a $50,000 Powerball prize took years, plenty of persistence, and one ticket that was worth checking twice.