A Missouri Lottery player was thrilled to discover she had uncovered 11 words on a “Crossword Plus” Scratchers ticket she’d purchased at Villa Liquors, 818 Highway 53, in Poplar Bluff. Though it meant she’d won a $50,000 top prize, she didn’t realize the size of her win right away.

After scratching the ticket, the winner returned to the store to have the clerk scan it.

“The clerk handed the ticket back to me and said, ‘Sorry, we can’t cash this one,’” the winner said. “That’s when I realized I had won $50,000!”

“Crossword Plus” players have won more than $3.2 million in prizes since the $3 game was released in September. Over $12.4 million in unclaimed prizes remain, including seven additional $50,000 prizes and 25 prizes of $5,000.

  In FY24, players in Butler County won more than $8.1 million in Missouri Lottery prizes, retailers received more than $820,000 in commissions and bonuses, and more than $2.2 million in Lottery proceeds went to education programs in the county.