LANSING, May 23, 2000 -- The six members of a Linden-based lottery club stared at their Michigan Lotto ticket in disbelief when they realized they were the winners of a $1,039,242 Lotto jackpot!

The club members held the sole ticket that matched all six numbers in the May 6 Michigan Lotto drawing:  2, 11, 15, 16, 21 and 27. That day’s announced jackpot was $2 million. The club, however, chose to receive its winnings in one lump-sum payment for $1,039,242, the present cash value of the jackpot before taxes.

"I bought the ticket on the Friday before the drawing," the club representative said. "On my way to work on Monday I stopped at the gas station and I checked the numbers on my ticket while I was there. I was so excited to find out the club had won!"

The club members, who requested anonymity, said they have been playing Michigan Lotto and The Big Game together as a club for the past year. The winning Michigan Lotto "easy pick" ticket was purchased at Mr. G’s Food Mart, 254 W. State Street, in Montrose. Prior to turning the winning ticket in at Lottery headquarters in Lansing, the club representative said he hid it in a "safe place."

The club members, who are all related, said that none of them have any definite plans for their winnings at this time -- they are "still thinking about it." The club representative added that he will likely invest part of his winnings. The lucky winners range in age from 40 to 65.

Michigan Lotto drawings are conducted every Wednesday and Saturday. The estimated jackpot for Wednesday’s (May 24) drawing is $3.1 million.

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