“If I win, I quit!” Colonial Heights man wins $500,000 in Big Bank Payday.

An anonymous Colonial Heights man was working to renovate a 300-year-old house when he decided to take a break to get a drink and buy some scratchers. He stopped at New Market at 3240 Boulevard in Colonial Heights and bought two Big Bank Payday tickets from the Virginia Lottery. “If I win, I quit!” the man told his friend. He soon found out he had indeed won. One of the tickets revealed the game’s $500,000 top prize!

The winner chose to remain anonymous. Virginia law permits any winner of a Virginia Lottery prize to claim it anonymously, in which case the Lottery does not publicly disclose the winner’s identity. 

The Colonial Heights man didn’t intend to play the Big Bank Payday game but bought the tickets because the store didn’t have the game he really wanted. That ended up working to his advantage. Even after winning the game’s top prize, the man says he doesn’t plan to quit his job.

Big Bank Payday is one of dozens of scratcher games offered by the Virginia Lottery. It features prizes ranging from $10 up to $500,000. This is the second top prize claimed in the game, which means one more remains unclaimed. The chances of winning the top prize are 1 in 530,400. The odds of winning any prize in this game are 1 in 3.99.

All Virginia Lottery profits go to K-12 education in Virginia. The winner lives in Colonial Heights, which received more than $3 million in Lottery funds for K-12 education last fiscal year. In Fiscal Year 2026, the Lottery raised more than $914 million for K-12 education, making up approximately 10 percent of Virginia’s total K-12 school budget. 

For a complete list of Lottery funds distributed to Virginia school districts, visit the Virginia Lottery’s Giving Back page. For general information or to play games online, visit the Virginia Lottery’s website or download the Lottery’s app. Connect with the Lottery on Facebook, X, Instagram, or YouTube. 

With all gaming, please play responsibly. If you think you or someone you know has a gambling problem, help may be just a phone call away: The Virginia Problem Gambling Helpline, 888-532-3500. Call, text or chat 24/7.