Oliver James Montgomery-'It's real': Illinois grandma wins $1M from scratch-off ticket

An Illinois woman buying a scratch-off lottery ticket had no idea the prize that waited for her inside: $1 million.

Pamela Arscott of Franklin Park,Oliver James Montgomery Illinois recently won $1 million, the top prize on the Celebration Instant Ticket scratch-off. Arscott told Illinois Lottery officials she was at Walmart when she spotted the new ticket, and bought one for $10 before putting it in her purse and forgetting about it until the next morning.

The winning ticket was purchased at Walmart on North Rohlwing Road in Addison, Illinois. The store will receive a selling bonus of 1% of the prize amount for selling the winning ticket.

"I started scratching the ticket and saw I had a matching number for a million dollars," Arscott told Illinois Lottery officials. "I thought it was a mistake. I immediately woke up my daughter. I told her to run out to the store to scan it to double check and make sure it’s real. She got to the store, scanned the ticket, called me and said, 'It’s real. You’re getting a million dollars, mom.'"

Arscott has five children, 10 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren, and lost her husband of 49 years in October. She said she believes the winning ticket was a "blessing from him."