NAME: Larry Grainger

AGE: 58

HOME: Raleigh

OCCUPATION: Owner of a grading company

WHAT: One $5 Carolina Cash ticket

WHY HE PLAYED: "I quit smoking back in August. What's $5 a week versus what I was spending on cigarettes?"

WHERE HE PLAYED: Capital Food Mart, 2929 Capital Blvd., Raleigh

NAME: Gary C. Thompson

AGE: 61

HOME: Greenville

OCCUPATION: Retired hardware salesman

WHAT HE PLAYED: $5 Carolina Cash

WHY HE PLAYED: "It's fun. It's a whole lot cheaper than a round of golf -- a whole lot cheaper. It's about what I spend on video poker now."

WHERE HE PLAYED: City Market, 211 S. Jarvis St., Greenville

NAME: Kenneth Mason

AGE: 54

HOME: Raleigh

OCCUPATION: Disabled YMCA employee

WHAT HE PLAYED: $5 for two Tic Tac Toe tickets and two N.C. Scenes tickets

WHY HE PLAYED: "Because if I win, I'm going to dedicate a tenth of it to the Lord, to Jesus, to a church we're attempting to build."

Where he played: New Bern Avenue Exxon, 1200 New Bern Ave., Raleigh

NAME: Moe Hagos

AGE: 54

HOME: Durham

OCCUPATION: Utility worker, Duke University

WHAT HE PLAYED: Several different tickets

WHY HE PLAYED: "I used to go to Virginia and spend $140 every two weeks. I'm glad it's here. I'm going to win, man!"

WHERE HE PLAYED: Family Fare BP, West Main Street, Durham

NAME: Teresa Hood

AGE: 53

HOME: Raleigh

OCCUPATION: insurance company executive director

WHAT SHE PLAYED: Three $20 stacks of tickets for herself and two co-workers

WHY SHE PLAYED: "I think if we do what we're supposed to do and put the money where it's supposed to go, it will help education and the children."

WHERE SHE PLAYED: Capital Food Mart, 2929 Capital Blvd., Raleigh

NONPLAYERS

NAME: Scipio Easterling

AGE: 62

HOME: Raleigh

OCCUPATION: Real estate agent

WHY HE DIDN'T PLAY: "I don't gamble. ... They throw this saying around -- 'You can't win unless you're in.' Well, I took statistics in school, and the odds are too great against you. I'm a winner regardless -- the Lord has taken care of me."

NAME: Jules Coco

AGE: 55

HOME: Cary

OCCUPATION: Computer programmer

WHY HE DIDN'T PLAY: "This isn't an education lottery. This is a stupidity lottery."

NAME: Jim Phillips

AGE: 32

HOME: Tuckasegee

OCCUPATION: Employee, group home for disabled adults

WHY HE DIDN'T PLAY: "It's such a long shot. It's like betting on whether you will get struck by a meteor."

NAME: Dennis Mabry

AGE: 55

HOME: Roanoke Rapids

OCCUPATION: Snack company deliveryman

WHY HE DIDN'T PLAY: "I'm just a working stiff. I've never played."

(Staff writers Jim Nesbitt, Jerry Allegood, J. Andrew Curliss, Eric Ferreri and correspondent Becky Johnson contributed to this report.)

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