I thought I missed my chance when my lottery numbers came up on a week I didn’t play – but I won $50,000 with a lucky mistake

A LOTTERY player’s missed opportunity turned into a $50,000 windfall.

Harford County Lottery Winner, Marylandrealized that the previous winning numbers were his license plate numbers and was sad that he hadn’t played them.

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But he ended up playing with the numbers on his wife’s license plate, which was the winner just a week later.

The lottery game the man played was Pick 5.

“It was killing me that I lost my plate,” the man told the Maryland Lottery.

“So I decided to play with my wife’s numbers.”

The Pick 5 numbers were revealed and the man anxiously checked his phone to see if he was the winner.

He explained that he couldn’t remember the exact numbers and needed to get his ticket to be sure.

However, after checking the numbers, he was sure he had won at least one of the smaller prizes.

“I was immediately sure I had won $10,000 on Boxed,” the man told the Maryland Lottery.

The man eventually realized that he had confused two of the numbers with his wife’s license plate numbers.

“I thought maybe I got the order right too, but I wasn’t sure until I found the damn note,” he said.

The mistake led to a $50,000 prize for the man and it ended up being successful.

“It turns out, however, that when I chose my numbers to play, I put two numbers out of order.”

The man went to claim his prize on April 5th.

However, he will instantly see some of that money disappear.

This is because he will have to pay a large amount of taxes.

In Maryland, lottery winners must pay federal and state taxes.

Top US Lottery Winners

Millions dream of winning the lottery and finding fame and fortune. These are the biggest winners in US lottery history.

• Edwin Castro – $2.04 billion, Powerball, November 8, 2022, in California.
• Theodorus Struyck – $1.765 billion, Powerball, October 11, 2023, California.
• Unknown Winner – $1.602 Billion, Mega Millions, August 8, 2023, Florida.
• Marvin and Mae Acosta of Los Angeles, California, John and Lisa Robinson of Munford, Tennessee, and Maureen Smith and David Kaltschmidt of Melbourne Beach, Florida – $1.586 billion, Powerball, January 13, 2016.
• Winner unknown – $1.537 billion, Mega Millions, October 23, 2018, from South Carolina.
• Winner unknown – he sued his child’s mother to keep his identity hidden – $1.348 billion, Mega Millions, January 13, 2023, from Maine.
• Unknown Winner – $1.337 Billion, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022, from Illinois.
• Winner unknown – $1.326 billion, Powerball, April 7, 2024, from Oregon.
• Yanira Álvarez – $1.08 billion Powerball, July 19, 2023 in California.
• Wolverine FLL Lottery Club – $1.05 Billion, Mega Millions, January 22, 2021, from Michigan.
• Winner unknown – $842.4 million Powerball, January 1, 2024, from Michigan.

The federal tax for lottery winners is 24% of winnings.

The state tax for lottery winners in Maryland is 8.75% for residents.

Non-residents only need to pay an 8% state tax on their lottery winnings.

“Lottery winnings must be declared as income when you file your tax return. In many cases, this will have a significant impact on your tax situation,” the Maryland Lottery said.

“Tax laws are complex and constantly changing.

“We strongly recommend that you consider seeking tax and financial advice from experienced professionals.”