Talk about persistence and the strength of a hunch. Kevin Clark, of Candler, North Carolina, felt that this was the day. The big day that the North Carolina Education Lottery jackpot was going to be his. But he needed to work for it and work for it he did. Call it persistence, call it lunacy, call it what you will, but Clark visited an incredible 40 or so stores over a four hour span, relentlessly chasing the top prize of the $5,000,000 Mega Cash scratch-off game.

Clark felt the prize was going to be in the west part of the state and he bought every single $20 Mega Cash ticket he could find. Gas fumes came out of his car and brain fumes out of his head. When he’d come up empty, Clark was on to the next store and the next after that. Finally, he reached a Stop N Go on U.S. 70 in Swannanoa, North Carolina, plucking another $20 on his hunch. And boy did he strike gold. With shaking hands and bleary eyes he stared at what appeared to be what he could only dream about – the $5 million top prize jackpot. He looked at the results again and again, not believing what he was seeing. And then he started crying. It was real, he had done it. His four hour odyssey to chase the winner paid off.

Call it persistence, call it lunacy, call it what you will: Kevin Clark’s long day resulted in him becoming a multi-millionaire.