Last week, one lucky Arkansan landed his biggest lottery prize yet and brought his friends along for the ride.

Benton County resident J. Cardona won $50,000 playing $50,000 Stacked, a $20 instant game. He claimed his prize at the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery (ASL) Claim Center on Aug. 26.

The winning ticket was purchased at White Oak Station #32, 1140 E. Centerton Blvd., in Centerton.

An occasional player, Cardona likes to play lottery games with his family and buys tickets whenever he feels lucky. He prefers buying $5 scratch-off games with his spare change, but this time something told him to take a chance on $50,000 Stacked.

“I’m just going to buy a ticket,” he told himself. “Why not? What could happen?”

Little did he know, the best possible outcome was just around the corner.

Cardona waited until the end of the day to scratch his ticket. When he finally realized he had won a $50,000 top prize, all he could say was, “No way!”

“It’s the first time I’ve ever won this much,” Cardona told lottery officials. “I’ve won $1,000 before, but nothing like this.”

The lucky winner first shared the good news with his family, then with a few coworkers who also enjoy playing the lottery. Just before heading to the ASL Claim Center, Cardona decided to call two of his close friends.

“You’re not going to believe it—I just won a big prize,” he told them. “Do you want to come to Little Rock with me?”

With that, the trio turned their drive to Little Rock into a fun, late-summer road trip.

Cardona plans to save some of his winnings and encourages other Arkansans to play responsibly.

Thirty-one $50,000 top prizes remain on $50,000 Stacked.

Visit MyArkansasLottery.com for more information about lottery games and how to play.

About the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery
The Arkansas Scholarship Lottery (ASL) creates winning people, winning futures, and winning moments. Since 2009, the ASL has sold over $8.6 billion and returned more than $1.6 billion for scholarships to benefit Arkansas students. More than 873,000 college scholarships distributed by the Arkansas Department of Higher Education have been awarded to Arkansans. As of July 31, 2026, the lottery has awarded more than $5.9 billion in prizes to players, more than $489 million in retailer commissions, and provided more than $461 million in state and federal tax revenue.

Follow the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery on Facebook, X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram. Visit MyArkansasLottery.com for more information on scholarships, winners, games, odds, promotions – and to join The Club for free. To get help with problem gambling, contact the National Problem Gambling Helpline at 1-800-522-4700.