Rolf Rhodes: The Multi-Lotto Winner Who Won Big Twice in 18 Months
Most people think of winning the lottery as a once-in-a-lifetime daydream. However, some people have enough luck that they win the lottery more than once! While some winners have to wait years between wins, we’re sure the wait is worth it. Rolf Rhodes is one multi-lotto winner who didn’t even have to wait long between two significant wins—only 18 months. In this article, we’ll tell you all about Rolf Rhodes’ lucky successes.
WHO IS ROLF RHODES?
Rolf Rhodes is a Massachusetts man who made headlines in November 2019 thanks to his second big lottery win. The Mendon resident picked up his first winning ticket from a Mac Package Store in Milford, a city just outside of his hometown, on May 22, 2018. Rhodes purchased his second winning ticket from an Imperial Gas and Country Store in Mendon, only three miles away from the store where he bought the first ticket.
While the Massachusetts State Lottery announced Rhodes’ win and shared his incredible story, not much is known about this two-time winner. All we know for sure is that he is one lucky guy when it comes to winning the lottery.
HOW MUCH MONEY DID ROLF RHODES WIN?
Rolf Rhodes was lucky enough to win a $1 million jackpot, not once, but twice. His first win came from a $10 instant ticket game called “Hit $1,000.” He had the choice of taking a lump-sum payment or an annual payout. Rhodes decided to take the one-time payment and walked away with $650,000 after taxes.
Rolf decided to do things a little differently for his second win. Once again, Rhodes won his big prize from a $10 instant ticket, this one called “$4,000,000 Instant Jackpot.” This time, Rhodes decided to receive the money in annual payments. That means Rhodes will get 20 payments of $50,000 before tax—certainly enough to never have to work again if he so chooses. According to the Massachusetts State Lottery, Rhodes has already received his first payment. At the time of Rhodes’ win, there were three $4 million prizes and seven $1 million prizes for the “$4,000,000 Instant Jackpot” instant game that remained unclaimed.
Rhodes isn’t the only one reaping the rewards from his lucky win. Imperial Gas and Country Store, the convenience store where Rhodes bought his second ticket, will also receive $10,000 for selling him a winning ticket.
WHAT WERE THE ODDS OF HIS WINS?
Unlike lottery hackers Jerry Selbee and Stefan Mandel, Rolf Rhodes beat incredible odds to win each of his $1 million wins. According to the state lottery, the odds of Rhodes winning his second prize were 1 in 1.68 million. That sounds crazy enough, but he beat even harder odds the first time. The odds of winning the prize for the “Hit $1,000” ticket were 1 in 2.1 million!
Though it might seem like the odds of winning the lottery twice are even slimmer than winning once, a Harvard professor weighing in on multi-lotto winners says that’s not actually the case. Statistics professor Dr. Mark Glickman says that winning the lottery once does not improve or weaken the likelihood of winning the lottery again in the future. He adds that the only thing that can alter a person’s chances of winning the lottery is the number of tickets someone purchases per game.
CONCLUSION
Though Rolf Rhodes’ story might sound impossible, there are actually quite a few winners with stories similar to his. And one thing that all multiple winners, including Evelyn Adams and James Bozeman Jr., have in common is they don’t stop playing the lottery once they’ve won.
That said, it is also important to play responsibly and to get the advice of experienced financial advisors should you ever be lucky enough to win big. The last thing you want to do is end up like one of those lottery winners who lost it all.
