2021-01-15 16:54:21.443

The Missouri Lottery’s “Jingle Bell Tripler” ticket caught the eye of a Wright City Scratchers player recently, leading to a $50,003 win.

Eugenio Danna Jr. purchased his ticket from Castle’s Grocery & Café, 722 Highway KK in Troy, and scratched the ticket in his car.

 “It was a little surreal,” he said of the moment he saw the prize amount. “I thought I messed up and scratched the wrong thing until I scanned it. It probably took an hour to sink in.”

He said he plans to put the prize toward some home renovations. Players in Lincoln County, where Danna purchased his winning ticket, won more than $7.8 million in Missouri Lottery prizes in the last fiscal year.

Retailers in the county received more than $735,000 in commissions and bonuses, and an additional $2.4 million of Lottery proceeds went to educational programs in the county. For a detailed list of programs that benefitted, visit MOLottery.com.