FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Christopher Richards had the winning scratch-off, but his teenage daughter might really be the lucky one.
Richards, 54, of Fort Lauderdale, claimed a $1 million top prize on a scratch-off ticket, and he says he’s using the winnings to set up his daughter for college and buy her a car.
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“I’m going to surprise her by setting up a trust fund in her name, ensuring she can go to college, and getting her a reliable vehicle,” Richards told Florida Lottery officials, noting that he hadn’t told his daughter about the windfall before coming in to pick up his winnings.
“As a parent, you always want to give your kids more than you had, and now I can.”
Richards won on the Fastest Road to $1,000,000 scratcher and opted to take his winnings as a one-time, lump-sum payment of $790,000.
He bought the lucky $30 ticket from Legends Pub, at 6235 North Federal Highway in Fort Lauderdale, which gets a $2,000 bonus commission.
The Fastest Road to $1,000,000 launched in February and, according to Florida Lottery, has 155 top prizes worth $1 million and a total of more than $948 million in prizes.
Of course, Richards can’t be called the luckiest guy in Florida, as a Jacksonville man recently won a $5 million top prize from a scratch-off just three years after winning $1 million in another lottery game.
Broward has had its share of fortunate lottery winners in recent weeks, though.
Florida Lottery says scratch-offs comprise about 75% of their ticket sales and generated over $1 billion for the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund in the 2019-20 fiscal year.