Text from sister prompts CA lottery player to check email. Turns out, he won big
A California lottery player learned he won a big prize — thanks to a text message from his sister.
Donald Breck Jr. bought a MONOPOLY Scratchers ticket, but it wasn’t a winner, California Lottery officials said in a June 26 news release.
So, he entered a second chance bonus draw for the game, lottery officials said.
Turns out, he won the grand prize: $30,000.
“He didn’t know he’d won, though, because he hadn’t been checking his email,” lottery officials said.
Then, as he relaxed on the couch after work one day, he got a text message “from one of his four sisters,” lottery officials said.
His sister said “she’d been told by someone else that maybe her brother had won some money, so he should check his email,” according to lottery officials
Sure enough, after checking his email and logging into his lottery account, Breck confirmed he was a winner.
“I was like, ‘This is pretty exciting,’” Breck said.
Breck told lottery officials he plans to spend his winnings on credit card bills and on his home.
This story was originally published June 26, 2025 at 1:43 PM with the headline "Text from sister prompts CA lottery player to check email. Turns out, he won big."
