By By Adam Prestridge
If you play the Florida Lottery, check your wallets and purses, you may be a winner.
Saturday, three players matched all five winning numbers in the FANTASY 5(r) drawing and will share a $287,324.73 top prize.
One of the winning tickets was sold at the State Line Gift Shop located at 11208 Hwy. 97 in McDavid, Fla.
Manuel Angulo from Hialeah, Fla. claimed his prize from the Miami area and Candido Suarez from Tampa claimed the prize from the Tampa area. The ticket sold in McDavid had not been turned in as of 6 p.m. Tuesday evening.
"It is not unusual for people to take a longer time to come in than a few days," Alfred Bea, communication manager for the Florida Lottery, said. "Sometimes it takes a few days for players to claim their prize."
The winning numbers were 09-19-27-28-32. Each top prizewinner will receive $97,774.91.
More than 132,000 other FANTASY 5(r) players won cash prizes or a free Quick Pick ticket for matching two, three or four numbers. Prize payouts are as follows: 383 players matched four numbers and each won $120.50; 12,022 players matched three numbers and each won $10.50 and 119,772 players matched two numbers and each won a free Quick Pick ticket.
The other two tickets were sold at Publix – Quick Pick in Hillsborough County and Dolphin Amoco – Quick Pick in Miami-Dade County. The three retailers will each receive a bonus incentive of $500 for selling the top prize winning tickets.
Bea said the player with the McDavid ticket has 180 days to claim their prize. Although uncommon, he said there have been instances when players cut it close to the deadline.
"It's rare that people take that much time, but we have had people wait until the last month," he said.
Bea said there is no way to tell where the person who bought the winning ticket is from.
"They could have just been traveling through," he said. "It's more than likely someone from the general area bought the ticket, but there's just no way of telling until that person actually comes in."
If you hold the winning ticket, you have to take it along with a form of ID to the Pensacola, Fla. district office at the Trade Winds Shopping Center located at 6601 N. Davis Hwy. The winner will also have to fill out a claims form and a tax form for the IRS.