Coworker jokes man will miss work because he won CA lottery. Turns out, he really did
Michael Chavez was enthralled with the presidential election.
So much so, he woke in the middle of the night on Nov. 5 to check the results, California Lottery said in a Jan. 28 news release.
His excitement, though, made him forget that he had bought a Mega Millions ticket for the drawing that same evening.
“I went back to bed without looking at my ticket,” Chavez told lottery officials.
It wasn’t until the next morning that a “playful text” from a coworker reminded him about his ticket that he bought in Lakewood, he said.
Chavez told his staff he wouldn’t be coming into work that day, lottery officials said.
Then, a coworker jokingly texted that they knew the reason he’d be out and included a screenshot of the Mega Millions results.
“He kidded me if the reason I wasn’t at work was because I had won the million,” Chavez said in the release. “He even jokingly congratulated me.”
Chavez finally remembered to check his ticket.
Turns out, he was the player who matched five of the six winning numbers, winning him a $1,214,818 prize.
“I could not believe my eyes,” he said. “I’m so excited and extremely grateful. I’ll never forget election night or especially that text.”
Had his coworker not texted him that morning, Chavez said he’s unsure of how long it would have been before he checked his ticket.
Lakewood is about a 20-mile drive southeast form Los Angeles.
What to know about Mega Millions
To score the jackpot in the Mega Millions, a player must match all five white balls and the gold Mega Ball. The odds of scoring a jackpot prize are 1 in 302,575,350.
Tickets cost $2 and can be bought on the day of the drawing, but sales times vary by state. Officials have announced they will cost $5 starting in April.
Drawings are held Tuesdays and Fridays at 11 p.m. ET and can be streamed online.
Mega Millions is played in 45 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
This story was originally published January 28, 2025 at 6:08 PM with the headline "Coworker jokes man will miss work because he won CA lottery. Turns out, he really did."
