You’ve heard about celebrities leaving big tips before, but nothing quite like this: at a Missouri sports bard, one customer tipped the bartender with a winning Powerball lottery ticket!
Receiving The Ticket
Young Taylor Russey has worked as a bartender at Bleachers Sports Bar in O’Fallon, Missouri, for many years, so she’s seen it all. However, nothing could prepare her for what happened one recent Saturday at the restaurant. It started off like any other weekend: with a regular customer that comes in always tips lottery tickets along with his cash tips. And he never forgets to give one to every worker at Bleachers Bar.
“And he did that on Saturday – he bought all of us lottery tickets,” Russey said. While the ticket was usually just a nice gesture, this time, it would turn out to be the biggest tip the bartender ever recieved!
Finding Out The Truth
The next morning at Bleacher’s, the staff put on the news. When they heard that the Powerball had finally been won, they all could not help but wonder if the winner was in the restaurant. However, Russey simply could not believe that anyone like her could ever win the grand prize. “I was like, ‘Guys, who won all this money and didn’t tell anybody,’” she said. Then, looking down at her ticket, the bartender realized that her numbers matched the numbers of the screen: 14, 27, 29, 59, 65, and the last one for the Powerball was 12. Now those numbers mean quite a lot to Russey!
“I kind of stood there for a second, looked at the cook, and then looked at the ticket before I started laughing and then started crying,” Russey remembers about the day. “[The ticket] told me I couldn’t cash it, that I had to claim the prize at a lottery office because I won $50,000.”
Claiming The Prize
Now, Russey has many hard decisions to make: how much to invest, take the winnings in a lump sum or payment plan, and many others. Most financial experts recommend winners keep their job and make several copies of the ticket with the signature before claiming the prize. It’s also the best to refuse to talk to media and change the address, number and open an anonymous bank account for the new sum. A lot of people will try to steal the money, and the first thing to do is to keep it and your life safe.
As for Russey, we’re proud to say that she’s responsible with her plans and the winning amount. “I’m not that kind of person. And this is not going to sustain me for the rest of my life. I still have to work,” she said, not forgetting about the real-life that surrounds her.
If you ever win a lottery and have no idea what to do with a ticket, don’t forget to contact a trusted financial advisor who’ll take over the process.