Gaston County Man ‘Couldn’t Believe’ He Won $1 Million Prize

BELMONT, N.C. (News Release) โ€“ When Dewey Smith of Belmont scratched off his 50X The Cash ticket and saw a $1 million prize, he couldnโ€™t believe his eyes.

โ€œI couldnโ€™t believe it to start with,โ€ he recalled. โ€œI kept looking at it and kept looking at it and then I ran it through the scanner and then I knew it was real.โ€

Smith purchased his winning $10 ticket from the Kingsway on Market Street in Cramerton.

โ€œIโ€™m really excited,โ€ he said as he claimed his prize Thursday at lottery headquarters. โ€œI just couldnโ€™t believe it.โ€

Smith had the choice of taking the $1 million as an annuity of 20 payments of $50,000 a year or a lump sum of $600,000. He opted for the lump sum and took home $424,503 after required state and federal tax withholdings.

The 50X The Cash game launched in February with six top prizes of $1 million. Three remain to be won.

Ticket sales from scratch-offs like 50X The Cash make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $725 million a year for education. For details on how $13.4 million raised by the lottery made a difference in Gaston County last year, visit www.nclottery.com and click on the โ€œImpactโ€ section.