North Carolina man wins $3 million from $30 scratch-off lottery ticket

John Turner, a 47-year-old man from Shelby, North Carolina, recently purchased a $30 scratch-off lottery ticket and won $3 million.

He bought the ticket from the Kangaroo Express on Mallard Creek Road in Charlotte and scratched it off in the parking lot.

When he realized he had won, he said, "My mind was going like 100 miles per hour... I finally hit the big one."

Turner had the option to receive his winnings as a $150,000 annuity over 20 years or a lump sum of $1.8 million.

He chose the lump-sum payment and, after taxes, took home $1,282,509. Turner plans to pay off his car, share some of the money with his family, and invest the rest.