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Hannibal Man Wins $10,000 on Ticket He Almost Didn't Buy

Third time is a charm for Donald Kline of Hannibal.  He bought two Missouri Lottery Scratchers tickets, and he almost called it a day.  Yet, something told him to try his luck again.  The first-time Lottery winner is "really glad" he did, because the third Scratchers ticket, a "Silver 7’s," contained a $10,000 prize.

Kline, 50, was at Pick-A-Dilly, 1329 Mark Twain Ave. in Hannibal, when he uncovered the prize.

"I was sitting in the gas station at the table, and the first ticket I scratched wasn’t a winner," he recalled.  "I thought, ’Man, I can’t catch a break!’"

He fared better on the second ticket, which had a $10 prize.  After cashing in the $10 prize and purchasing one more ticket, he realized his luck was improving.

"I’m like, ’Oh, yeah!’" he revealed, referring to when he began uncovering $500 prize amounts.

He continued scratching his ticket at the retail counter.

"They were all $500!" he remembered.  "The guy (clerk) was like, ’You just won $10,000!’  It’s unreal!"

Kline plans to use the windfall to pay bills.

With a laugh, he pointed to his wife, Bronica, and said he’ll also "give her some money."

"Silver 7’s,"  a $5 game with a top prize of $77,000, officially began on Feb. 27.