James Clayton of Texarkana, Texas, recently won $100,000 playing the $5 50X the Win instant game. He claimed his prize at the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery Claim Center on April 1.

The winning ticket was sold at E-Z Mart #4365 on 4524 N. State Line Ave. in Texarkana. 

James, a twice-weekly lottery player from “the Texas side” of Texarkana, purchased the winning ticket in Arkansas to switch up his usual routine. He bought two $5 instant game tickets, winning nothing on the first ticket and $5 on the second.

Instead of keeping his $5 prize, as he was initially inclined, James used it to buy a 50X the Win ticket.

He scratched off the ticket in his truck, expecting another small win. As he continued scratching, however, the Texarkana resident saw that he had won much more: his ticket held the $100,000 top prize.

“I didn’t really know how to handle it,” James said. “That’s a lot of money.”

Apprehensive about returning to the store, James waited until a clerk walked outside to ask her to verify his win. Sure enough, he had won the grand prize.

The Texarkana resident, thrilled with his newfound wealth, rushed to share the news with his wife. He was careful to keep the win a surprise, though.

“I went home and tried to be cool and casual,” the winner shared. “Then I just said, ‘Hey, look at this ticket.’”

James intends to share some of his prize with family members and save the rest for retirement expenses. He also plans to continue playing lottery games on occasion, hoping for another exciting win.

There are two top prizes left on the 50X the Win instant game.

A $50,000 Powerball® ticket was sold at Divine Gas, 500 Highway 49 N. in Paragould, for the April 1 drawing. The winner has 180 days from the draw date to claim their prize.

Ahead of tonight’s drawing, the Powerball jackpot has reached a life-changing $1.09 billion. It is the fourth-largest Powerball jackpot since the game’s founding and the ninth-largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history.

For more information about lottery games and how to play, visit MyArkansasLottery.com.

About the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery
The Arkansas Scholarship Lottery (ASL) creates winning people, winning futures, and winning moments. Since 2009, the ASL has sold over $7.2 billion and returned more than $1.3 billion for scholarships to benefit Arkansas students. More than 720,000 college scholarships distributed by the Arkansas Department of Higher Education have been awarded to Arkansans. The lottery has awarded more than $4.9 billion in prizes to players, more than $409 million in retailer commissions, and provided more than $175 million in state and federal tax revenue.

Follow the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Visit MyArkansasLottery.com for more information on scholarships, winners, games, odds, promotions – and to join The Club for free. To get help with problem gambling, contact the National Problem Gambling Helpline at 1-800-522-4700.