REGIONAL: Charlotte woman will take ‘bigger’ honeymoon with $250,000 Powerball win

Published 9:32 am Tuesday, June 20, 2023

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RALEIGH – After seeing the Powerball jackpot on a billboard, Haley Dugger of Charlotte took her mom’s advice and it paid off with a $250,000 Powerball prize.

“Mom always used to say, ‘If you don’t play, you can’t win,’ ” Dugger said. “When I pass a Powerball billboard, that reminds me to buy one.”

Dugger said she is getting married in November and her Powerball win will help her have a great honeymoon in Greece and Croatia.

“We can definitely take a bigger honeymoon than originally planned,” she said.

Dugger bought her lucky $3 Power Play ticket using Online Play on the lottery’s app. She matched the numbers on four white balls and the red Powerball to win $50,000 in the June 7 drawing. The prize increased to $250,000 when the 5X Power Play multiplier hit.

“My dad recommended that I should do the multiplier,” Dugger said. “I’m glad I listened to his advice.”

Dugger said she saw the email notification saying she won while at work.

“I immediately stepped out of the office and called my fiancée,” she said. “After that I had to go to a meeting at work and act normal.”

She claimed her prize Monday at lottery headquarters and, after required federal and state tax withholdings, took home $178,146.

Wednesday’s Powerball drawing offers a $400 million jackpot, or $207.1 million in cash. The odds of winning a Powerball jackpot are 1 in 292 million. Powerball is one of six lottery games in North Carolina where players have the option of buying their tickets at a retail location or with Online Play, either through the lottery’s website or NC Lottery Official Mobile App.

Ticket sales from draw games like Powerball make it possible for the lottery to raise $2.5 million a day on average for education. For details on how $61.8 million raised by the lottery made a difference in Mecklenburg County last year, visit www.nclottery.com and click on the “Impact” section.