BOISE, Idaho ÔÇô Gary Humphrey needed a lucky break after suffering a broken leg on the job two years ago that left him unable to work. Luck found Humphrey at one of his usual hangouts, Toad's Store and Ale House on the north side of Chubbuck last Saturday night when his Wild Card ticket matched all five numbers and the Wild Card to win a $501,194 jackpot!

"I was reading the Sunday paper and watching a little NASCAR pre-race and I checked my Powerball and Hot Lotto numbers," described Humphrey on how he knew he had the winning ticket. "I didn't have any winners, so I watched a little more TV before I checked my Wild Card tickets on my laptop. I stared at the computer screen for about 15 minutes thinking it was just too good to be true."ÔÇï

Certain there must have been a mistake, Humphrey called Idaho Lottery Customer Service to verify the numbers. Sure enough, his ticket matched all the numbers and the Wild Card for the half-a-million dollar jackpot. Humphrey claimed his winning ticket on Thursday from Idaho Lottery headquarters in Boise.ÔÇï

ÔÇïToad's Store and Ale House, a roadside convenience store and bar on the far north side of Chubbuck sold the winning ticket to Humphrey, a regular customer. When the crew who works for Toad's found out Humphrey was the winner, a huge cheer was let out and the celebration started.

ÔÇï"It couldn't have happened to a better guy," said Myrose Powell, proprietor of Toad's Store and Ale House. "This is fantastic for him."

For their part in selling the winning ticket, Toad's receives a bonus from the Idaho Lottery of $20,000.

ÔÇïHumphrey is currently enrolled at Idaho State University taking Computer Aided Drafting (CAD) courses to learn a new profession. He plans to use his windfall to support his education and buy property.

Wild Card is a draw-style game played only in Idaho, Montana, North Dakota and South Dakota. This was Idaho's tenth jackpot win on the game since it was launched in 1998.ÔÇï

# # #