Having had luck with the game before motivated her to play it again

By Kate Northrop

CHICAGO, Ill. — After having won a generous prize on a favorite lottery ticket once before, an Illinois woman decided to keep playing her favorite game until she ended up winning a $200,000 prize.

An Illinois mother of four had luck with a particular lottery game in the past, and it motivated her to try purchasing it again for it to result in a $200,000 win.

The winner, who goes by the name "Bingo Lady" to relay her story anonymously, made a quick stop at Ftex Foods on West Chicago Avenue in Chicago, her neighborhood grocery store. She saw her favorite ticket in the cabinet and knew she had to give it another shot.

It was the Illinois Lottery's $5 "7X Bingo Multiplier" scratch-off game, which she had luck with in the not-so-distant past.

"This is my favorite ticket to play," "Bingo Lady" told the Lottery. "I even won $1,000 on the same ticket about three months ago."

She scratched the ticket off when she got back home. She did win again, but a much more staggering amount, this time the game's $200,000 top prize.

"I was in shock," she recalled to Lottery staff, laughing in good humor at what followed next. "I immediately woke my husband up, and guess what he said? 'What? We gotta pay the rent!'"

The winner didn't waste any time sharing the news with her four children and a close friend, who all celebrated with and for her. And now that "Bingo Lady" has claimed her prize, she plans on putting the winnings towards her family's future and security, with a bit of fun sprinkled in.

"Most of the money will go toward supporting my kids and their future," she explained in a press release. "And I'll treat my husband to dinner at our favorite restaurant."

For selling the top prize-winning ticket, the retailer receives a $2,000 bonus from the Lottery, or 1% of the prize amount.

The $5 "7X Bingo Multiplier" ticket is a special edition ticket from the Illinois Lottery where 100% of the game's profits are allocated to good causes throughout the state, including Alzheimer's support programs, breast cancer research and support initiatives, HIV/AIDS education and research programs, homelessness prevention and assistance programs, and much more.

There are currently four out of ten top prizes of $200,000 remaining in the scratch-off game, which launched in October 2024. There are also seven out of 24 second-tier prizes of $20,000 and 59 out of 160 third-tier prizes of $1,000 left to claim.

The overall odds of winning any prize in the game are 1 in 3.99.

(Click to display full-size in gallery)An anonymous Illinois Lottery player celebrates incognito-style behind their ceremonial check.