Not 1 but 2 Kentuckians win big in Powerball drawing

PADUCAH, Ky. ( FOX 56 ) — A Paducah woman used her favorite numbers, and a Paducah man listened to his grandson’s suggestion; they both took home $150,000 each after visiting the Quick Shop Bridge Street.

The April 6 Powerball drawing saw multiple people take home big prizes. Two $150,000 tickets were purchased at Quick Shop, located at 2517 Bridge Street in Paducah. The other ticket, valued at $50,000, was purchased at Kroger on 844 South College Street in Harrodsburg.

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The woman who asked to remain anonymous told lottery officials she had been playing the same sets of numbers for the past several weeks. Those favorite numbers ended up matching four white balls and the Powerball to win $150,000.

The next morning, she grabbed her tickets and pulled the winning numbers up on her phone

“She was checking them, and she kept saying, “man, man, man.” Finally, she said ooh, no way. Stop, are you serious,” her husband said.

“I was circling the numbers to see how I won.  I was like, wait a minute and it just kept going on down the line.  I really didn’t know how much I’d even won,” she said.  “That’s good!  I don’t know what it is but that’s good,” her husband said.

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“We went up to the store to check the tickets and it [$150,000 prize amount] went across the board,” her husband said.

“It was the last ticket I checked,” she said.

“I can’t believe I was just one number away from becoming a billionaire,” she said. “I’m very thankful though and content with what I have.”

She received a check for $108,000 after taxes and said she plans to pay off debt and invest some of the winnings.

Jimmy Sharp, of Paducah, who has worked as a captain on a riverboat for nearly 50 years, had just returned home from a 28-day shift.

He told officials he was leaving the boat when he saw a sign for the upcoming Powerball jackpot.

Sharp chose to have the lottery terminal pick his numbers, but his grandson suggested he add Power Play to his selection, giving him a multiplier on his winnings.

Sharp took his tickets to the store the morning after the drawing and discovered he was holding one of the winning tickets.

“I had six tickets, and when I gave her the fifth one, that’s when it lit the machine up.  She said, ‘Oh, you’ve got a big winner,’” he said.

“That’s when I knew, and she told me to sign the ticket.”

“I felt pretty good,” Sharp said.

He told officials he plans to put the winnings in the bank and will help his family.

Sharp and the anonymous woman both left the lottery headquarters with checks for $108,000 after taxes.

Quick Shop will receive $3,000 for selling both winning tickets.

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