Ft. Riley Soldier Wins $22,000 Playing 2by2

Michael Smith of Junction City considers himself pretty lucky at lottery games, and for good reason!  He and his wife Christina matched all four numbers in the December 30 2by2 drawing and won a top prize of $22,000.  The lucky numbers were Red 8 and 23 and White 6 and 20.

Smith, a staff sergeant who has been stationed at Ft. Riley since March, says he won quite a few prizes playing the lottery in his home state of North Carolina, but nothing like what he won yesterday here in Kansas!

"Christina and I have been playing the same numbers on 2by2 for a couple of weeks now," Smith explained. "Christina picked them, and they're a combination of family birthdays and anniversaries.  The numbers we won on are her grandfather's and little sister's birthdays."

The Smiths checked their numbers on the Kansas Lottery website last night.  The first thing they did, after jumping up and down, was to make sure Michael signed the back of the ticket.  Then they endured a sleepless night, as they excitedly looked forward to driving to Topeka today to claim the ticket.

"We really do feel like we're lucky people," they said. "I think we might be back here to claim another big prize in the future." 

In the meantime, the Smiths will enjoy one of their best New Year's Eves since being married three years ago.  They're also looking to the future and say they will spend some of their prize money on a cruise next year.

Smith purchased the lucky ticket where he buys all his lottery tickets - Handy's 3, located at 1839 N. Washington in Junction City.