Michigan Man's Life Transformed with $25,000 a Year for Life Lottery Win

An Oscoda County man got the surprise of a lifetime when he logged in to his Michigan Lottery account and saw he’d won $25,000 a year for life playing the Lucky For Life game.

Ray Wcisel, of Mio, won the big prize when his Lucky For Life ticket matched the five white balls drawn on Oct. 1: 11-13-24-29-47.

He bought the winning ticket online at MichiganLottery.com.

“I only purchase tickets online, and Lucky for Life is the game I like most,” said Wcisel.

“I saw an email from the Lottery late one night about claiming a prize, but I assumed it was a phishing email.

I logged in to my Lottery account to double-check, and when I saw the prize pending in my account, I knew the email was real. It was the best feeling I’ve ever had!”

The 62-year-old visited Lottery headquarters recently to claim his prize.

He chose to receive his winnings as a one-time lump sum payment of $390,000, rather than annuity payments of $25,000 a year for 20 years or life, whichever is greater. He plans to invest his winnings.