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A lucky man in North Carolina is set up for years thanks to a lottery win that landed him a huge prize that he will receive every year for decades.
Donald Ledford, of Canton, recently purchased a $30 Millionaire Maker ticket from the Fastrac Food Mart on Old Leicester Highway in Asheville, according to a release from the NC Education Lottery. When he scratched off the ticket, he discovered he won one of the game's $1 million prizes.
"I really didn't believe it until I [collected his prize]," he said.
When accepting his prize on Wednesday (January 24), Ledford had the option of receiving his win as either an annuity of $50,000 over the course of 20 years or as a one time, lump sum payment of $600,000.
"We thought for a long time about the annuity or the lump sum," he said, adding that he eventually settled on the annuity after talking it over with lawyer and a financial advisor. "It's like winning $50,000 twenty times. Now we can enjoy this for many, many years."
For Ledford's first payment, he collected $35,759 after all required state and federal tax withholdings. His last payment will come in 2044. According to lottery officials, he plans to use his winnings to help pay off his house.