Warren beer distributorship gets boost for selling $1.9 million winning lottery ticket

Ed Palattella, Erie Times-News
·2 min read

WARREN, Pa. — Kris Hodak has no idea who bought a winning Pennsylvania lottery ticket worth $1.86 million at his beer distributorship, Brokenstraw Beverage Inc. on Route 6 in Youngsville, just west of Warren in Warren County.

But Hodak knows that nothing like that has ever happened at his business, which he bought in 2017.

"This a small beer distributorship," Hodak said. "The previous owners never sold anything like that."

Hodak does know that Brokenstraw Beverage Inc. will get a $10,000 bonus "for selling the big winning ticket," the Pennsylvania Lottery said in a statement.

A winning Match 6 ticket worth $1,860,000 was sold at a beer distributorship in Warren County on Tuesday, the Pennsylvania Lottery said.
A winning Match 6 ticket worth $1,860,000 was sold at a beer distributorship in Warren County on Tuesday, the Pennsylvania Lottery said.

Hodak said he intends to put the money in his business' lottery account, used to pay winners of instant scratch-off tickets, for example. Brokenstraw Beverage has nothing to do with paying the $1,860,000 to cover the winning ticket.

"That is all the Lottery," Hodak said.

The Pennsylvania Lottery on Wednesday announced that Brokenstraw Beverage sold "a jackpot-winning" Match 6 Lotto ticket from Tuesday's drawing. "The ticket correctly matched all six winning numbers, 7-14-19-22-29-39, to win the $1,860,000 jackpot prize, less applicable withholding," according to the Lottery.

Players in Match 6 pay $2 and choose six numbers from 1 to 49 or have numbers randomly selected by computer. More than 50,400 other Match 6 Lotto tickets also won prizes in the drawing, the Lottery said.

The Lottery did not identify the winner of the $1,860,000. It said "winners are not known until prizes are claimed and tickets are validated," and that Match 6 Lotto winners have one year from the drawing date to claim prizes. Those who want to file a claim can visit palottery.com.

Though the $1,860,000 is likely to change the life of the winner, Hodak said he will continue to run his business as usual.

Asked again if he had ever experienced anything like selling the winning ticket, he responded in a low-key manner.

"Nope," Hodak said.

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Contact Ed Palattella at epalattella@timesnews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ETNpalattella

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: $1.9 million winning lottery ticket sold in Warren County