After nearly winning twice, an Arkansas lottery player finally won his dream prize.

Roy A. of Lockesburg won $180,000 in the Sept. 9 Natural State Jackpot (NSJ) drawing. He purchased the winning ticket at E Z Mart #4447, located at 3417 S. Camellia in Lockesburg and recently claimed his prize at the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery (ASL) Claim Center.

The winning numbers were 8, 13, 22, 31 and 38.

A long-time lottery player, Roy buys NSJ tickets daily as “just something to do.” He also plays Powerball® and other lottery games, but NSJ’s $1 price point and exclusivity to Arkansas make it his favorite. Certain that he would one day win big, Roy purchased a ticket for the Sept. 9 drawing at his favorite retail location.

The next morning, Roy followed his regular routine of waking up, drinking his coffee and checking his numbers. However, what came next was completely out of the ordinary: he had matched all five winning numbers needed to win the $180,000 jackpot.

“That last number shocked me,” Roy told lottery officials. “I just about fell out my chair when I got it.”

He had matched four out of five winning numbers twice in the last two months, but until now, his biggest lottery prize was $300.

Roy first shared the good news with the E Z Mart team, whom he considers to be like family. One team member even accompanied him to the ASL Claim Center to celebrate his win.

“He’s like a grandfather to me,” she shared. “I was so excited for him; I almost cried.”

Roy plans to put his winnings in the bank.

“It’s a miracle as far as I’m concerned,” the lucky winner said. “I always knew I’d get it.”

The jackpot for tonight’s NSJ drawing is $130,000.

Also drawing tonight, the Mega Millions® jackpot is $451 million.

Mega Millions drawings occur every Tuesday and Friday at 10 p.m. Tickets cost $5 per play, and ticket sales cut off at 9:45 p.m.

NSJ and Mega Millions tickets are available for purchase at licensed ASL retailers and through retailer apps from ASL’s Play on the Go partners. For more information about the Play on the Go options, visit the Where To Play page on the ASL website.

For more information on lottery games and how to play, visit MyArkansasLottery.com.

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 billion and returned more than $1.5 billion for scholarships to benefit Arkansas students. More than 822,000 college scholarships distributed by the Arkansas Department of Higher Education have been awarded to Arkansans. The lottery has awarded more than $5.5 billion in prizes to players, more than $459 million in retailer commissions, and provided more than $188 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.