'I'll definitely bring her something': Nash County man vows to pay it back to employee who convinced him to buy winning $100K Powerball ticket

Michael Buck needed some convincing to buy a Powerball ticket to test his luck at winning the record $2.04 billion jackpot.

While Buck didn’t win the jackpot prize, the 62-year-old Rocky Mount man did win $100,000.

“The girl at the pharmacy told me they sold Powerball tickets at customer service,” Buck said. “I told her, ‘If I win, I’ll come back and buy you a car.’”

Buck, who works as a solutions architect, matched numbers on four white balls and the Powerball to win $50,000 on his Power Play ticket. The prize doubled to $100,000 when the 2X Power Play multiplier hit.

“I didn’t hit the jackpot, so I can’t buy her a car, but I’ll definitely bring her something,” Buck said.

Buck bought his $3 Quick Pick ticket from the Walmart Supercenter at 1511 Benvenue Road in Rocky Mount.

“I usually start playing when the jackpot [surpasses] $500 million,” he said. “This win really is quite extraordinary.”

Buck said he didn’t know how to react when he realized he won.

“I kind of just walked around the house a little bit,” Buck said. “I was shaking.”

Buck’s win was one of 10 big wins for North Carolinians in the drawing, including a $1 million winner. He claimed his prize Tuesday at lottery headquarters and, after required federal and state tax withholdings, took home $71,017.

Buck said a large amount of his winnings will boost his retirement.

The Powerball is one of four lottery games in North Carolina where players have the option of buying their tickets at a retail location or with Online Play through the lottery’s website or with the NC Lottery Official Mobile App. The other games are Mega Millions, Lucky For Life and Carolina Cash 5.

Ticket sales from scratch-off games make it possible for the lottery to raise more than $2.5 million per day on average for education. A $10 million grant, using money raised by the lottery, helped Nash County build the new Red Oak Elementary School.

For details on other ways Nash County benefits from lottery funds, visit the lottery’s website.