All news

Michigan lottery player still reeling from $250,299 prize

Congratulations Christopher Cassel!

BIG CA$H Second-Chance winner Christopher Cassel.
BIG CA$H Second-Chance winner Christopher Cassel. Photograph credit to the Michigan Lottery.
Corinna Underwood

Many people dream of winning a big prize from playing the lottery, but when it happens, sometimes the reality of winning takes a long time to sink in. That's how it was for Fowlerville lottery winner Christopher Cassel.

The lucky player won a prize of $250,299 after he was selected in a random drawing by the Michigan Lottery on April 10, 2024. He played the BIG CA$H Second-Chance drawing by playing eligible BIG CA$H online instant games at the Michigan Lottery website. 

In an interview with Michigan lottery officials, he said:

I came across an email from the Michigan Lottery informing me I’d won a $250,299 second chance jackpot, and I immediately thought it was a scam. After calling the Lottery I found out it was real, but I still had a hard time believing it.

The 34-year-old player recently traveled to the Michigan Lottery headquarters to collect his prize. He plans to use his prize money to buy a home and a new truck.

BIG CA$H Second-Chance winners

The Michigan Lottery launched the BIG CA$H Second-Chance game in April 2022. Since then, players have won a combined total of more than $7.5 million in progressive jackpot prizes. In 2024 alone, players have won:

  • January: $257,631 progressive jackpot prize
  • February: $227,383 progressive jackpot prize
  • March: $250,299 progressive jackpot prize

Each month, a new drawing period begins, and the progressive jackpot is reset to $5,000. The next drawing will take place on May 8, 2024.

How to play BIG CA$H Second-Chance

You can earn entries to the Michigan Lottery’s BIG CA$H Second Chance by playing any of the following eligible instant online games:

  • Triple Eagle Bonus
  • Big Cash Catch
  • Hot 7s
  • Cash Vault
  • Viva Las Jackpots
  • Michigan Multiplier Wilds
  • Lucky Start
  • Mystery Vault
  • Monthly Jackpot

Each time you play one of the above online instant games, a percentage of your wager will go into the fund for a progressive jackpot prize. The prize will be awarded to a randomly chosen winner in a monthly Second Chance drawing. Every 50 cents you wager will earn you one entry into the Big Cash 2nd Chance Jackpot Drawing for the month in which you play.

You can view your entries in the drawing by visiting the Michigan Lottery website. All your entries should appear within 73 hours of playing a game. Each month, after the entry period has ended, a drawing will take place, and one winner will be chosen from all the entries from the given month. Your entries are only valid for the month they were earned. Each month, a fresh drawing period will start, and the Second Chance jackpot will be reset to $5,000.

How the lottery helps Michigan

Each time you play the Michigan lottery, your purchase benefits local businesses and companies as well as K-12 education. In 2023 alone, the Michigan Lottery contributed more than $1.3 billion to the state of Michigan School Aid Fund.

Comments

Comments have been disabled for this article.

Related articles

Mandeep Singh Maan, holding his $2 million check from the British Columbia Lottery Corporation.
Court says $2M lottery win wasn't a team effort

A Surrey trucker kept his lottery win after coworkers claimed it was bought for their lottery pool.

Todd Betzold profile pic

Todd Betzold

Emily Hickox, holding her $500,000 Michigan Lottery check.
White elephant mix-up leads to half-million-dollar Christmas surprise

Detroit Lions bring double luck. A $500K lottery win and playoff spot coincide in a Christmas miracle.

Samantha Herscher profile pic

Samantha Herscher

The North Carolina Pick 4 logo on a blue background, with golden 888 balloons.
8-8-8-8 delivers $12.2M payout to lucky Pick 4 players

Quads like 8-8-8-8 are fan favorites, which is why it produced 3,151 winners on Sunday.

Todd Betzold profile pic

Todd Betzold

Phil Campolo, the QuickCheck convenience store who returned a lost, $273 million winning Mega Millions ticket.
Lost and found: Players who lost winning lottery tickets

These lottery players won millions but lost their tickets.

Alex Cramer profile pic

Alex Cramer

Recent articles

View All
Mandeep Singh Maan, holding his $2 million check from the British Columbia Lottery Corporation.
Court says $2M lottery win wasn't a team effort

A Surrey trucker kept his lottery win after coworkers claimed it was bought for their lottery pool.

Todd Betzold profile pic

Todd Betzold

The Oregon Lottery and Cash Pop logos on a blue background.
Pop goes the jackpot: Oregon's newest lottery game simplifies winning

Oregonians can now play for lottery wins every hour with Cash Pop, where a single lucky number could pay up to $2,500.

Samantha Herscher profile pic

Samantha Herscher

Fraudulent lottery deal costs firms $6.5M penalty
Fraudulent lottery deal costs firms $6.5M penalty

Two firms face hefty fines for misleading officials to win a DC lottery contract under false pretenses.

Todd Betzold profile pic

Todd Betzold

A picture of the suspects related to the nearly $7,000 lottery ticket crime spree in New York City.
NYC stores targeted in $7K lottery ticket thefts

Police are tracking gun-wielding suspects caught on camera fleeing with the stolen loot.

Todd Betzold profile pic

Todd Betzold