Mom of 3 wins huge NC lottery prize after son’s prediction. ‘Couldn’t believe it’
A North Carolina woman was left in disbelief after her son predicted a winning number on a scratch-off ticket that led to a huge lottery prize.
Emily Praytor was in a car scratching a lottery ticket she bought at a store in Lexington as her husband drove, according to a Sept. 29 news release from the North Carolina Education Lottery.
As she was scratching, her son in the backseat made a prediction.
“He said, ‘I hope you win on number 55,’” Praytor told lottery officials, “and that was the winning number on my ticket.”
The mother of three boys won $100,000 on a $30 MAX-A-MILLION ticket, lottery officials said.
“I was like, ‘Did we really win this?’” she said. “I couldn’t believe it.”
After taxes, she took home $71,758, according to the lottery.
“This is pretty awesome,” she said.
She said she plans to use the money for home renovations and save the rest.
The game still has 19 $1 million prizes and eight $100,000 prizes left, as of Sept. 30.
This story was originally published September 30, 2025 at 4:52 PM with the headline "Mom of 3 wins huge NC lottery prize after son’s prediction. ‘Couldn’t believe it’."
