The odds of winning big in the lottery are already pretty small, so you’d imagine that winning more than once is too good to be true. However, this phenomenon has happened not just once, but many times. In this article, we’ll look at ten people who defied the odds by becoming multiple lottery winners. Some people have all the luck!
10. Richard Lustig
If you’re a big fan of playing the lotto and are looking for ways to beat the system, then you’ve probably already heard of Richard Lustig. Lustig won the lottery an astounding seven times in 17 years. Though he never won any mind-blowing jackpots—his biggest prize was just over $840,000—he is said to have won over $1 million in total. Nevertheless, Richard was quick to capitalize on the recognition he received from his wins by writing a book about his story and strategy entitled Learn How to Increase Your Chances of Winning the Lottery.
9. Melvyn Wilson
Melvyn Wilson of Virginia has won the lottery an incredible four times. His first win came in 2004 when he won $25,000 on a scratch ticket. The following year, Wilson won not once, but twice more with the Virginia Lottery—one prize of $1 million and one of $500,000. That would have been amazing enough, but he followed those three wins with one more in 2013, winning $500,000 on another scratch card. When asked what he’s done with his over $2 million of winnings, the retired postman jokingly replied that he’s invested in himself. Could that be a hint about his winning strategy? If it is, it seems to have worked out!
8. Racy Pel
Racy Pel had one incredible day in December 2013. Pel, who says he would occasionally buy about $20 in lines for the California lottery, started his winning streak off by discovering one of his lines had won $32,000. That would’ve been a good day for almost anyone, but Pel got even luckier when he learned that another one of his lines won an incredible $50 million!
7. Virginia Fike
Like Racy Pel, Virginia Fike’s life changed in a single day! Fike purchased two Powerball lines in the state of Virginia in 2012. No one had won the grand prize of $80 million that week, but it was announced that of the 14 tickets across the country that had won $1 million, two were sold in Virginia. Imagine Fike’s surprise when she checked her numbers and learned that she was the winner of both of the $1 million prizes sold in her state. Not a bad day at all!
6. Calvin and Zatera Spencer
Another set of lucky winners from Virginia, married couple Calvin and Zatera Spencer have won the lottery three times. Even more incredible, each of the wins happened within a month! The first win came when they took home $1 million from a Powerball draw. Two weeks later, they won $50,000 on a Virginia Lottery Pick 4 game. To close off the winning streak, they won another $1 million the very next day on a scratch card.
5. Janet Pflaumer-Phillips and Kevin Phillips
Janet Pflaumer-Phillips and Kevin Phillips must have laughed all the way to the bank when Janet won $1 million on a lucky scratch-off ticket in 2019. Why, you ask? Because although that in and of itself is pretty amazing, the fact that Kevin had already won two separate $1 million prizes in 2014 and 2016 makes their story borderline impossible to believe!
4. Eugene Martellio
Eugene Martellio of New Jersey is a pretty optimistic guy. After winning the lottery twice—taking home $730,000 from a Jersey Cash 5 draw in 2017 and another $3 million prize from a scratch card—Martellio hopes to win big again on a Mega Millions or Powerball.
3. Brenda Gentry
Brenda Gentry is another lucky Virginia resident who won big not once, not twice, but three times—all on the same ticket! Gentry bought a 50X the Money scratch ticket and scratched off her first big prize of $5,000. She continued scratching for another $500 and then finally scratched off the grand prize of $5 million. Of the big win, Gentry said she was excited but hoped her life wouldn’t change too much—a humble winner!
2. Rodney Meadows
Rodney Meadows is one more example of a multiple lottery winner who earned all of his winnings in one incredible day. Rodney’s streak started when he won a nice $1,000 on a scratch ticket. He decided to spend some of his prize money on another card, and it was a good thing he did—the second ticket won him $10 million!
1. Joan Ginther
Joan Ginther is another multiple lottery winner who wanted to win big over and over again. Her winning streak started in 1993 when she won $5.3 million from the Texas Lotto. Ginther used her winnings to continue buying tickets and won prizes in 2006 and 2008, taking home $2 million and $3 million respectively. However, her biggest win didn’t come until 2010 when she won an incredible $10 million. She reportedly purchased a total of more than 100,000 tickets in order to win so many times, but it looks like it was well worth it.
Conclusion
Everyone plays the lottery with the hope that they might win big, but these multiple lottery winners, just like two-time scratch-ticket winner Rolf Rhodes, broke the odds by winning more than they ever could have imagined. Whether they chose to use their winnings to keep playing or decided to stick to their old habits, there’s no doubt that their lives changed forever thanks to the lottery.
Interested in reading about more repeat lotto winners? Then check out the stories of Stefan Mandel and Jerry Selbee, two people who proved you don't need luck to win—as long as you know how to hack the lottery.
