I won $4 million from an instant scratch-off ticket I bought at a gas station – but I lost almost half immediately

A MASSACHUSETTS resident won a whopping $4 million on a scratch-off ticket but was forced to forfeit nearly half of it.

Jeremy Bouchard had not played the lottery for a while but decided to try his luck with an instant-win game.

He bought a ticket for the $4 million Jumbo Cash game on March 26 at the Sandri Stop Mart in Greenfield, which is about two hours west of Boston.

The scratch-off awarded him with the top prize, making him a multimillionaire in a matter of minutes.

When he went to collect his $4 million jackpot, he chose to take a lump sum rather than annuity payments, leaving him with $2.6 million.

But this is the pre-tax amount, meaning his actual winnings will be slightly smaller once he pays the dues.

On a federal level, the IRS will take 24% of lottery winnings for taxes, and Massachusetts has a 5% tax rate on winnings from gambling.

The lottery is fun to play, but it's important to remember that it is a form of gambling and comes with inherent risks.

If you or someone you know has signs of gambling addiction, call the National Gambling Hotline at 1-800-522-4700 or visit the National Council on Problem Gambling website.

ANOTHER BIG WINNER

Steven Richard from Rhode Island also won $4 million from the Massachusetts lottery.

His father bought him a scratch-off ticket for the $4,000,000 Bonus Bucks game, which costs $10 to play and has prizes ranging from $10 to $4 million.

When he scratched off the ticket it revealed he had won the top prize.

Richard couldn't believe he was kicking off his weekend by becoming a millionaire.

Before telling anyone, he scanned the ticket on the state's lottery app to confirm it was real.

Just like Bouchard, Richard opted for the lump sum and took home a payment of $2.6 million.

He said he'll use the money to travel.

CHECK NOW

Powerball officials are urging players to check their tickets as nine $1 million prizes remain unclaimed.

The winners come from Wednesday night's drawing for the Match 5 game, according to Powerball.com.

Two winning tickets were sold in California, two in Massachusetts, and one in Georgia, Maryland, New Jersey, South Carolina, and Washington.

Since the last jackpot was won, there have been 40 Powerball drawings, ballooning the prize amount to $1.23 billion.

"It was probably the coolest moment," said a $50,0000 lottery winner.

Plus, lottery officials are urging raffle players to check their tickets as a $2 million prize remains unclaimed.