Mount Pleasant Man Wins Lotto Prize

Until just a few days ago, the only thing a Mount Pleasant man had ever won was a Mickey Mouse watch when he was six.

While the watch, if he could find it, is probably worth a lot today, it doesn't hold a candle to his $250,000 winning Mega Millions ticket.

The man, who was not identified by the Lottery Commission, made the quarter-million-dollar discovery Saturday while sipping his morning cup of coffee and reading the newspaper. Printed in black and white on the inside page were five numbers he liked 16, 29, 48, 52 and 54.

"Holy cow," he said. "I've won some money."

It was 6 a.m. so he tip toed into the bedroom to see if his wife was awake. She was and she thought he was kidding about the ticket. He assured her the numbers matched the ones in the paper and on the Lottery's website.

While his ticket for the March 2 drawing missed the jackpot by one number, the Megaball was 5 and he had 25, he still feels fortunate.

"My only regret is that I didn't spend the extra $1 for the multiplier," he said.

Had he, his prize would have been an automatic $1 million.

"It's still the thrill of a lifetime," he said.

The couple is putting the winnings away for retirement.

"I never pick my own numbers, because I don't have any lucky numbers," he said waiting for the check in Columbia. "Maybe I'll write these down."