Disbelief to delight: Record win becomes a reality

By Kate Northrop

The Arkansas player who won a $5.123 million Lotto jackpot — the largest prize in the in-state game's history — revealed that he was skeptical the win was a "hoax."

An Arkansas man was so shocked to hear that he had won the record $5.12 million Lotto jackpot that he initially didn't believe it.

After a year and a half without a jackpot winner, the current Arkansas Lotto jackpot run has finally come to an end, but not before reaching a record amount of $5.123 million. The last time the jackpot was won was on April 29, 2023.

While Arkansas players might be surprised to finally see someone hit the Lotto jackpot, the jackpot winner didn't quite believe it himself.

"It just doesn't sound right," he thought after finding out he won.

The winner, who chose to remain anonymous, purchased a lottery ticket online for the Feb. 1 Lotto drawing, which matched all six winning numbers: 1, 6, 7, 19, 27, and 40. The Bonus ball was 14.

The mere idea of winning the lottery wasn't what was so farfetched — he had won a few smaller prizes before. This prize in particular was much more significant.

"What a weekend!" he exclaimed upon claiming his prize at the Lottery Claim Center in Little Rock on Feb. 3.

He's a long-time lottery fan who's been playing draw games like Powerball, Mega Millions, and Natural State Jackpot on a weekly basis. He never thought to play Lotto until he noticed the new jackpot record.

"When I saw it was over $5 million, I decided to jump in," he explained to Lottery officials.

He recently began ordering lottery tickets online and bought two Quick Picks for the drawing. Since the winning ticket was purchased online and was therefore linked to his profile, he received a call from the retailer informing him of the win.

"We thought it was a hoax," the winner's wife told the Arkansas Lottery.

Only when he picked up the physical copy of the ticket did the reality of the $5.12 million win set in. As of now, he's only told his immediate family and a couple of close friends, the Lottery said in a press release.

"We're going to do this smart," the couple said.

With the winnings, the pair will pay off all their debts and set aside a nice chunk for retirement.

"We're all thrilled for the Yell County resident who won the $5.123 million Lotto jackpot," Lottery Executive Director Sharon Strong said in a statement. "It's a momentous day at the lottery when we can award an Arkansan with such a significant jackpot."

Since Arkansas allows lottery winners to remain anonymous for a period of three years, it will be a long time before the public learns the winner's identity. In practical terms, the public likely will have little interest in discovering who won a three-year-old jackpot after the anonymity period expires, while preserving the Lottery's degree of transparency.

Lottery Post maintains a state-by-state list of lottery privacy laws throughout the United States and several other countries.

The Lotto jackpot currently stands at $293,000 for the next drawing on Saturday, Feb. 15. The odds of matching all six numbers to win the jackpot are 1 in 3,838,380.

Lotto tickets cost $2 per play, and drawings occur every Wednesday and Saturday at 9:00 p.m. Central Time. A courier service offers online purchases with a service fee.

All winning numbers, prizes and odds can be found on Lottery Post's Arkansas Lottery Results page right after each drawing.