• A player in Illinois nicknamed the Classic Car Collector has just won $2m from the Mega Bucks game
• He played with a $20 scratch-off ticket and had a difficult time acknowledging that he had indeed won
• The winner has announced no immediate plans for what he would do with the money, but he has a few ideas

A lucky player in Illinois has won an eye-watering sum, grabbing the $2m lottery prize from the Mega Bucks game.

The player had bought a $20 scratch-off ticket and managed to turn it into a massive seven-figure payday.

Turning a $20 scratcher into a $2m payday

Although the winner’s name was not revealed by the Illinois Lottery, and the player himself had wished to remain anonymous, there was the celebratory fanfare and photo-op with an outsized check all the same.

The lottery has continued in its tradition of giving cool nicknames to its big-time winners, calling the man "Classic Car Collector." Interviewing for the lottery, the lucky devil had this to say:

"It was a typical morning like any other – until it wasn’t. I was on my way to work and I stopped at a gas station to buy a cup of coffee. At the checkout, I decided to grab a scratch-off lottery ticket, too – a purple one lit up on the screen at the exact second I looked at it, so I said, ‘I’ll take that one."

The winner had the chance to scratch the film off the ticket and realize that he had won the life-altering sum. He couldn’t believe his eyes at the moment; he told the lottery later. So flabbergasted at his good fortune, the man went back to the Lenny’s Gas N Wash at 1201 W. Jefferson Street in Shorewood and scanned the ticket inside.

The machine had no second thoughts, however, and promptly displayed "WINNER" in flashing colors on the screen, convincing the ticket holder that he had indeed won!

"That’s when it really started to sink in, and my first thought was," he added, describing the events that followed – he had to go home and tell his wife. He did, and the experience was emotional – the man’s wife appeared at one point, he claimed, as if she were going to faint.

Winner’s wife almost fainted when she heard the news

Of course, as is customary with such big wins, the venue that sold the ticket will also get a small premium - $20,000. But hold on, why was the winner called the "Classic Car Collector?"

Well, as it turns out, the man loves to collect classic cars – a longtime hobby of his. With a fair share of the $2m coming his way before long, he would have time to treat himself to a new vintage vehicle if he chose to.

The important thing is to stay out of trouble, which is not the case for the Kentucky Powerball winner, who snatched the $167m top prize only to land in jail a few days after he confirmed his identity.

Image credit: Unsplash.com