Kwanta and Crystal Pugh of Lansing played the numbers 3-8-0-0 straight 18 times for the January 12 evening draw and won a total of $90,000. The husband and wife are both avid Lottery players and had previously won $5,000.

"I watched the numbers come up on TV and couldn't believe it," said Crystal. "I couldn't sleep at all that night, I kept getting up to make sure the tickets were safe." When asked what they would do with the prize money, in unison both responded that they will pay bills. Kwanta went on to say that once their obligations were paid, they would and take a vacation someplace warm.

Birthdates, anniversaries and old addresses are common for players to bet; for the Pughs, it was the last four digits of an old phone number.  The lucky couple plays two or three of the same sets of numbers for each drawing.

The winning own-pick tickets were purchased at Waverly Party Store, 3302 S. Waverly Rd., in Lansing.

Over 98.5 cents of every dollar spent on Lottery tickets is returned to the state in the form of contributions to the state School Aid Fund, prizes to players and commissions to retailers. In fiscal year 2009, the contribution to schools was $724.5 million. Since its inception in 1972, the Lottery has contributed more than $15 billion to education in Michigan.

For additional information, please visit the Lottery's Web site at www.michigan.gov/lottery.

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