Woman goes to store for baking soda — comes back with top lottery win. ‘Crazy!’
A Virginia woman went to the store for baking soda and came home with a big lottery win, officials said.
Melinda Jacques won a top prize worth $100,000 from the Lincoln scratcher game, the Virginia Lottery said in a July 2 news release.
“It feels crazy!” Jacques told the lottery. “It doesn’t feel real!”
She bought the winning ticket for $5 at a convenience store in Gladstone, about a 90-mile drive west from Richmond, lottery officials said.
The odds of winning the top prize in the Lincoln game are 1 in 765,000, and the odds of winning any prize are 1 in 3.9, according to the game’s webpage.
This is the third top prize claimed in the game, which started Feb. 4, lottery officials said. One top prize remains.
This story was originally published July 2, 2025 at 5:49 PM with the headline "Woman goes to store for baking soda — comes back with top lottery win. ‘Crazy!’."