Cape Cod fisherman reels in $10M lottery prize

Dec 9, 2015, 11:11 am (10 comments)

Massachusetts Lottery

Includes video report

William "Chopper" Young Jr., a shellfisherman and champion oyster shucker, has won the $10 million prize winner in the Massachusetts State Lottery's "$10,000,000 Mega Fortune" instant game.

Young opted to receive the cash option on his prize and collected a one-time payment of $6,500,000 (before taxes), according to an official statement from lottery officials today announcing the win. He plans on using his winnings to help his family and invest, the statement said.

Young's winning scratch ticket was purchased at Express Mart, located at 2619 Route 6 in Wellfleet. The store will receive a $50,000 bonus for its sale, the lottery said.

Three $10 million prizes and ten $1 million prizes remain in the "$10,000,000 Mega Fortune" $20 instant game.

"Chopper" Young is known for winning oyster shucking competitions, including at the annual Wellfleet OysterFest. 

VIDEO: Watch a CapeCast video of "Chopper" Young showing how to shuck oysters

Cape Code Times, Lottery Post Staff

Comments

music*'s avatarmusic*

 $6,500,000.00 before taxes?  Did they deduct 35% before taxes?

 Each region in America has its' own favorite food. 

Party on! Party

KY Floyd's avatarKY Floyd

"Young opted to receive the cash option "

It can't be the first time you've seen that in an article about somebody winning a prize of a million dollars or more.

music*'s avatarmusic*

 I do not play scratchers so I am not familiar with those rules. With Power Ball and Mega Millions they only take out 25%. You will owe an additional 15% and maybe more for Obama Care. Thanks for your help and continuing this thread.

Todd's avatarTodd

Quote: Originally posted by music* on Dec 9, 2015

 I do not play scratchers so I am not familiar with those rules. With Power Ball and Mega Millions they only take out 25%. You will owe an additional 15% and maybe more for Obama Care. Thanks for your help and continuing this thread.

No, there is no such thing as "taking money away" when choosing the cash option.  The cash option IS the jackpot, and the annuity is calculated based on the cash on-hand, plus the amount of money the lottery earns in interest (by purchasing various investments) over the period of time covered by the annuity.  The lottery advertises the annuity value because it is a larger amount, but the cash value is the actual jackpot.

Powerball or Mega Millions may get the lotteries better investment rates, because the lotteries are probably able to negotiate better annuity rates due to the larger jackpots, so it is possible that the cash value for those games will be better when compared to in-state games (whether it is scratch-offs or lotto games).

Some people choose the annuity payout option because the lotteries are usually able to negotiate investment rates that are better than what you could get on your own when you shop the investment markets.  Most people choose cash, because there is more immediate spending power, but if you're a long-term investor, it makes sense to at least consider the annuity.

PrisonerSix

In the U.S., 25% is withheld for federal income tax, and what is withheld for state income tax depends on the state. In my state, Louisiana, 5% is withheld for state income tax.

music*'s avatarmusic*

 Todd, Thank You for your clarification. It was a difficult day for me.

HaveABall's avatarHaveABall

Quote: Originally posted by music* on Dec 9, 2015

 $6,500,000.00 before taxes?  Did they deduct 35% before taxes?

 Each region in America has its' own favorite food. 

Party on! Party

Hi music*, you are correct.  Just these past few years we've been learning that when we see a "scratch game" that offers a grand prize of over $1M ... we should assume that the small print (usually on the back of the ticket) indicates that that $1M+ is merely the ANNUTIZED amount.  We also have learned that very few folks accept the annuitized amount, they negotiate down by accepting the "cash/lump-sum" amount which is usually 35-40% less (then AFTER that, the lottery office deducts the 25% as an initial deduction towards the Federal Income taxes soon due ... simultaneously, the lottery office also deducts your state's FULL State Income Taxes, past due property taxes, past due child support, past due spousal support, etc.). 

Once a person digests the above details ... they soon understand that's why many bigger win lottery folks are tapping their feet/banging their head against a wall while waiting up to 45 days until they receive their electronic deposit from the lottery headquarters!  So it makes sense not to tell folks you won because the winner truly doesn't receive any monies for 1.5 months after certified mailing or delivering the official claim form to the lottery headquarters.

Mail For You

RedStang's avatarRedStang

sully16's avatarsully16

He looks like a fun guy to hang with, congrats to the lucky guy.

Gleno's avatarGleno

Chopper Young Jr. found his  prize pearl in the lottery oyster of Massachusetts!

Now he can sit back and take it easy... but it looks like he will probably  continue to compete in those oyster shucking contests.

Thinking of...

End of comments
Subscribe to this news story