He grabbed the ticket in Sault Ste. Marie on his way home, same as he always does. This time the drive paid off.
A 27-year-old Mackinac County man is suddenly $2 million richer, and it all comes down to a habit he keeps every single time he hits the road.
He plays the Michigan Lottery’s Two Million Dollar Cashword scratch-off before road trips. Every time.
“Every time I go on a road trip with family or friends, I buy a Two Million Dollar Cashword ticket to scratch on the drive,” the winner said.
This time, he was in Sault Ste. Marie with a friend, getting ready to head home, so he grabbed his usual ticket.
And right before he started scratching, he said something he is going to be repeating for the rest of his life.
“As I was getting in the car I said to my friend, ‘Do you think people ever actually win on these?’” he recalled.
He did.
His friend, riding shotgun, got a front-row seat to the answer.
He started scratching on the drive and lost track of how many matching words he was turning up.
“I counted nine words a few times, so I thought I’d won $10,000 until I found a tenth word,” he said.
That tenth word turned a $10,000 surprise into a $2 million one.
The ticket cost $30. The odds of scratching off the top prize were about 1 in 1.3 million.
He brought the ticket down to Lottery headquarters in Lansing and chose a one-time lump sum of about $1.3 million rather than payments stretched out over the years. He is staying anonymous, which up here just means he gets to keep the best poker face in the county.
The Daily Press summed it up the way only a U.P. paper would, with a headline that just called him a Yooper who hit it big.
It is the kind of luck that makes you believe in the little rituals. And if his story has you itching to plan your own U.P. drive, there is plenty worth pulling over for, from the tiny town thousands blow past without stopping to America’s largest bear ranch up north of Newberry.
The Two Million Dollar Cashword game launched back in January, and players have already won more than $27 million on it. There are still two more $2 million top prizes sitting out there, waiting to be found.
So next time you are headed out of town and a scratch-off catches your eye by the register, remember, somebody has to find that tenth word.
Recommended Reads
The Northern Lights over Lake Superior are pure magic, and here’s where to catch them
A U.P. family is racing to save the 100-year-old Toonerville Trolley before it’s scrapped
Five pilots are flying U.P. kids over Tahquamenon Falls this Sunday, and it won’t cost a dime
Topics: Mackinac County, Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan Lottery, lottery winner, scratch-off, Upper Peninsula, Yooper
Sources: Michigan Lottery (Michigan Lottery Connect press release, June 3, 2026) and The Daily Press, Escanaba (“Yooper wins lottery with scratch-off,” June 2026).
Keep exploring
More From Yooper Hub
Know a story we should cover?
Help Us Find What Matters Across the U.P.
Send us a local lead, community event, photo, or story idea. The best Yooper Hub stories often begin with a reader.