A woman from northern Kentucky is now thousands of dollars richer after showing her mom how to play a lottery game online.
Prospect native Lisa Maltese said she won $111,615.38 on Friday, May 20, while teaching her mother about the Celtic Coins Jackpot Instant Play on the lottery website, according to a release from the Kentucky Lottery that was obtained by People magazine.
Maltese told officials that she had her mother visiting from Florida last week. Maltese said that she called her mom into the room, and they sat down at her laptop as she wanted to show her step-by-step how to play the lottery game online.
Lisa Maltese learned she had won after a pyramid appeared on her screen
Maltese said the screen started going into a bonus "coin frenzy" highlighting different parts of the game after placing an opening $5 wager. According to the Kentucky Lottery, an Instant Play Ticket for this Instant Play Game may be purchased for $0.50, $1.00, $2.00, $3.00, $5.00, $10.00 or $20.00, unless authorized by the President at a discount for promotional purposes.
Instant Play tickets are only available online and may not be purchased at retail. Maltese's mom is not allowed to play this game in her home state of Florida as players of this game must have a valid Kentucky address.
Maltese learned she had won the game's jackpot after "a pyramid appeared" on her screen. Maltese said a message appeared alongside the pyramid which said "Congratulations, you won $111,615.38."
Maltese was shocked with the lotto win, saying she just could not believe it. She remarked that with just a couple of clicks, here they are. According to Maltese, what made the win even more special was that she was able to share the moment with her beloved mother. Maltese said it was so nice to have her mom sitting next to her when they won.
Maltese takes home $79,246.90 in prize money after taxes
After confirming the massive lottery win in her online account. Maltese then shared the news with her husband, Dan, who thought she was joking at first. The lucky woman told her husband to sit down before delivering the stunning news. Maltese said he was in disbelief when she told him how much she had won with Dan remarking "I thought it was a joke."
WDRB reported that Maltese wasted no time in claiming her winner's check, arriving at the headquarters of Kentucky Lottery in downtown Louisville with her immediate family a few hours after finding out she had won the jackpot.
According to the news release, Maltese took home a cool $79,246.90 in prize money after taxes. Maltese said she and her husband Dan are taking some time to let the lotto win sink in, but the couple would probably use some of the money she won to take a nice vacation. Maltese later said in the interview that it was so crazy.
