Rochester Woman Wins $500,000 On Powerball Ticket

ROCHESTER, MI — A Rochester woman's $50,000 winning Powerball ticket was increased to $500,000 thanks to the power play, according to the Michigan Lottery.

Deborah Bates, 65, matched the four white balls and the Powerball from the Dec. 14 drawing (36-51-59-66-68, Powerball 25). She won $50,000, but thanks to the Power Play, her prize was multiplied to $500,000. She bought her ticket online.

"I couldn’t sleep one night, so I was playing on my phone, when an email from the Lottery came through that said: ‘Your winnings have arrived,’" Bates said. "When I logged in to my Lottery account and saw my account balance was $500,000, I couldn’t believe it! I woke my husband up and had him look everything over to make sure it was real. It still hasn’t sunk in that I won!"

Bates claimed her prize at Michigan Lottery headquarters and said she plans to save the money.

The Powerball jackpot was last won on Nov. 19. One ticket bought in Kansas won the $93 million jackpot. The current jackpot stands at $473 million.