Des Plaines Lottery Player Wins $2 Million Scratch-Off Prize

The winner bought the $20 ticket at ZJ's Pantry Plus Liquors and plans to use the money for a new home and a vacation.

By Eric DeGrechie, Patch Staff

Aug 27, 2026 6:55 AM CDT

Lady Luck said she scratched the ticket while she was still inside the store rather than waiting until she got home. (Illinois Lottery)

DES PLAINES, IL — A stop at a neighborhood store turned into a $2 million payday for one Illinois Lottery player.

The winner, who chose to remain anonymous under the name "Lady Luck," bought a ($20) $2,000,000 Maximum Multiplier Instant Ticket at ZJ's Pantry Plus Liquors, 699 N. Wolf Road in Des Plaines, according to the Illinois Lottery.

"I couldn't believe I won, especially from a store I frequent," Lady Luck said. "I've won $10,000 in the past, but this is my first top prize."

Lady Luck said she scratched the ticket while she was still inside the store rather than waiting until she got home.

"I usually wait until I get home, but for some reason, I decided to scratch off the ticket right then and there," she said.

When she saw the prize, she scanned the ticket and asked her brothers to confirm.

"I was flabbergasted when I saw so many zeros," she said. "You bet I scanned that ticket to make sure it was a winner. I even asked my brothers to double-check so I knew I wasn't just seeing things."

House, Vacation In The Plans

Lady Luck told the Illinois Lottery she plans to invest in a new house and take a vacation with some of the winnings.

"I just feel so blessed from this win," she said. "I'm going to treat myself — a trip to the Big Apple sounds like a perfect celebration."

ZJ's Pantry Plus Liquors will receive a $20,000 retailer selling bonus, equal to 1 percent of the prize.

The Illinois Lottery said players have won more than 37 million Instant Tickets so far this year, totaling more than $1 billion in prizes.

Several Big Illinois Lottery Wins In August

The Des Plaines win is the latest in a run of notable Illinois Lottery prizes reported this month.

Earlier in August, a Chicago mother won $400,000 on an Illinois Lottery scratch-off ticket.

A $10.25 million jackpot-winning ticket was also sold at a Plainfield grocery store.

In New Lenox, a gas station sold a winning $1 million Lotto ticket.

And one of the biggest Illinois lottery stories of the month came after a supermarket sold a $1.04 billion Powerball jackpot ticket — though the winner had not yet come forward when Patch reported on the sale.

The Illinois Lottery offers Instant Tickets ranging from $1 to $50 at about 7,000 retail locations statewide.