Ohio Man Wins $1 Million Powerball Prize In Michigan

Adam Bradley, a 34-year-old from Westerville, OH, was in Michigan visiting family when he decided to buy a ticket for the April 28 drawing. He stopped in at the Speedway gas station on E. Holland Road in Saginaw to pick up a ticket for himself and one for his mother.

The Michigan native told reporters: “My mom, grandma, and I were going to dinner, and I told them I wanted to stop and buy tickets since I was in town. My grandma was skeptical. She said: ‘I don’t know why you play, no one ever wins.’”

Despite the doubts, Bradley matched five numbers - 20, 22, 28, 45, and 50 - to land the $1 million prize. He learned that he won the following morning, when a family member told him the winning numbers.

“As I was listening to the numbers, I couldn’t believe my ears,” he said. “I couldn’t stop shaking when I realized I’d won $1 million! I told my grandma: ‘It turns out you were one million times wrong!’”

It took seven months for Bradley to come forward and claim the prize, and he has used that time to plan what he will do with his newfound wealth. He wants to buy a new home, take his family on vacation, and save the remaining money. “Winning is nice, it gives me a sense of financial security,” he said.

Michigan Lottery rules state that winners have up to a year to claim prizes, so although Bradley still had over four months left before the deadline, it is unusual for prizes to go unclaimed for so long, unless they don’t get claimed at all. There is currently over $3 million in prize money waiting to be claimed in Michigan alone (across all games), including one $250,000 Powerball prize from the January 10 drawing.

That winner has less than a month before the unclaimed money is transferred to Michigan’s School Aid Fund. The winning ticket was bought from Cleary's Pub in Howell, Livingston County.

Head over to the Unclaimed Prizes page to find out what money is still to be claimed in your state. As of November 28, 2018, there was over $11 million worth of Powerball prize money waiting to be collected. States have different rules in place for what happens if no one comes forward in time, but the money is usually used to fund education and charitable projects, or it is transferred to the state’s General Fund.