'I Am Just Floored': Woman Discovers She Won $1 Million Lottery Prize While Checking Her Email at Work Initially, she thought the email was a scam, but went to lottery headquarters and walked away with a six-figure check after taxes.

By Madeline Garfinkle

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Justin Sullivan | Getty Images
A Kentucky woman found out she won a $1 million dollar lottery prize while checking her email at work.

A little-known secret: in some states you can buy lottery tickets online — which also means, if you don't check your email, you could miss some big winnings.

A woman in Louisville, Kentucky (who chose to remain anonymous) discovered she won a $1 million Powerball prize last week while casually checking her email at work, Lex18 News reported.

"I literally was like, no way," she told the outlet. "I am just floored."

After receiving the email from the Kentucky Lottery informing her of the massive winnings, she and her husband initially thought it was a scam — until she made a trip down to the Kentucky Lottery headquarters to claim her ticket. The couple walked out with a check for $715,000 after taxes.

Related: Woman Wins Lottery After Clearing Life Savings For Daughter's Cancer Treatment: 'The Best Winning Lottery Story'

The woman told Lex18 that she and her husband intend to put the money towards "things around the house" and traveling.

Lottery tickets can be purchased online directly through state lotto websites in nine states (Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, New Hampshire, North Dakota, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Virginia) and Washington D.C.

In some states (Arkansas, Colorado, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, and Texas) players can purchase tickets online through third-party sites such as Lotto.com, which sends digital images of tickets to players.

In Oklahoma and Indiana, players can purchase their tickets through the states' lotto apps, but then need to print the ticket in person at a retailer or lotto vending machine. Residents in Oregon can use the state's third-party courier service that purchases tickets on behalf of players and notifies them when they win.

As for the rest of the country? You have to play the old-fashioned way.

Related: Man Gets Cut In Line at Publix And Ends Up Winning $1 Million On A Lottery Ticket

Madeline Garfinkle

News Writer

Madeline Garfinkle is a News Writer at Entrepreneur.com. She is a graduate from Syracuse University, and received an MFA from Columbia University. 

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