Iowa Lottery

Marshalltown Woman Shocked By $50,000 Win

Sandra Potter Wins Top Prize Playing the "Double Payday" Scratch Game

  Hear Sandra tell her story.

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DES MOINES, Iowa - A Marshalltown woman stopped to pick up two of her favorite scratch tickets and ended up winning the top prize of $50,000!

Sandra Potter said she was in disbelief when her second "Double Payday" ticket revealed the top prize.

"I was just shaking. I called Christy at Casey's and I said, 'Christy, I think I just won $50,000!'" Potter said.

Potter said the cashier at Casey's told her to stop by after work and have the ticket validated, so she did.

"It was a $50,000 winner and I was so excited," Potter said.

Potter's brother, Gary Phillips, accompanied to her claim her prize Friday at the Iowa Lottery's headquarters in Des Moines.

"I thought I was going to win $50 because I saw the five-zero, but I kept scratching and then here's these other three zeros!" she said. "It was so exciting; I'm still shaking."

Potter, who works in an insurance agency, said she's thinking about using some of her winnings to buy a new car. She purchased her winning ticket at Casey's, 1009 W. Lincolnway in Marshalltown.

"It's fun to play the lottery. I really like the scratch games," Potter said.

In the past, Potter has won a prize of $7,777 playing scratch games.

"I was just complaining yesterday, 'How come I can't win big! I never win big! I guess it pays to complain," Potter laughed.