ROUTINE STOP TURNS INTO FIRST BIG WIN

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Marvin McElroy Wins Top Prize of $30,000 Playing the "Crossword" (orange newsprint) Scratch Game

DES MOINES, Iowa – An Ottumwa man got more than just his usual cup of coffee on Wednesday. Marvin McElroy won the top prize of $30,000 playing the "Crossword" (orange newsprint) scratch game.

McElroy bought his scratch ticket and headed over to his brother-in-law's radiator shop to scratch it. Once he realized what a big prize he had won, he headed straight back to the station to get it validated.

"I went back and the woman at the station was filling the shelf and I gave her a big hug," McElroy recalled. "She gave me a funny look. And I told her and she had a big smile on her face."

He was so excited by his win that he shared the news right away with his family.

"I told all my kids," said McElroy with a grin.

He said at first they didn't believe him.

"Now they'll believe me," laughed McElroy, a retired plumber.

Prior to this $30,000 win, McElroy, 55, said he won $3,000 several years ago. He said he plans to tuck his winnings away for now.

"I'm going to hold onto it for a little bit," stated McElroy. "See how everything's going and maybe go get a car or something."

McElroy claimed his prize at the Iowa Lottery headquarters in Des Moines. He bought his winning ticket at Kum & Go, 534 Church St. in Ottumwa.

Crossword (orange newsprint) is a $3 scratch game. Players win a prize by uncovering at least three complete words in the ticket's puzzle. If a player uncovers 10 words, he/she wins $30,000. The overall odds of winning in the game are about 1 in 4.

Fifty prizes of $30,000 are still up for grabs in Crossword (orange newsprint) as well as 69 prizes of $3,000, more than 1,020 prizes of $300 as well as more than 4,930 prizes of $100.

Since the Iowa Lottery's start in 1985, its players have won more than $2.2 billion in prizes while the lottery has raised more than $1.1 billion for state programs.