Massachusetts man credits divine intervention for $1 million State Lottery scratch ticket win

If you believe in divine intervention, then the story of a Massachusetts man that recently hit it big on a scratch ticket may put a smile on your face.

According to the Massachusetts State Lottery, Edward Richards is the fourth $1 million prize winner in the Massachusetts State Lottery’s “Billion Dollar Extravaganza” instant ticket game, the Mass Lottery’s first $50 ticket.

Richards, who is from Haverhill, said that he had attended Easter Mass on Saturday night and that after being blessed with holy water at Mass, he felt that he needed to buy some lottery tickets. He ended up going to a store in an area he would not have otherwise been had he not gone to Mass, purchasing his winning ticket at Richdale Convenience, 67 W. Main St. in Georgetown.

Richards, who was joined at Mass Lottery headquarters by his daughters Keri Richards and Dawn Meoli, chose the cash option on his prize and received a one-time payment of $650,000 (before taxes). He plans on putting his winnings toward home improvements and installing a swimming pool.

The store will receive a $10,000 bonus for its sale of this ticket.

“Billion Dollar Extravaganza” offers over $1 billion in total winnings and features the largest instant win prize in Mass Lottery history – $25 million.

With an overall prize payout of 82.0 percent, “Billion Dollar Extravaganza” has the highest payout percentage of any game ever offered by the Mass Lottery. The odds of winning a prize in the game are 1 in 4.10.