KANNAPOLIS, N.C. — Kannapolis resident Stephen Kardos had to take a minute to make sure it was real. He stopped at the Han-Dee Hugo's on Carolina Beach Road in Wilmington for a drink before visiting a pier, and decided to scratch a $10 Scorching Hot 7s ticket.
He'd soon realize he won a top prize: $700,000.
"I freaked out for a second there," he said. "I thought it was fake or something."
Kardos, 28, claimed his prize at the NC Lottery headquarters in Raleigh on Tuesday. After required federal and state withholdings, he took home just shy of $500,000.
"I almost started crying," he said, "because I can finally own my own house now."
And he may just make a move to his lucky place; Kardos loves fishing and is considering buying a home in Wilmington.
The NC Lottery notes the Scorching Hot 7s game first debuted in April, and Kardos is the second winner to claim one of four top prizes of $700,000. More than $900 million is raised from ticket sales each year for education; $7.4 million raised by the lottery was used in Rowan County in 2021.
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