Theresa Lynchosky claims $1M Powerball hours before deadline
Theresa Lynchosky, a 63-year-old Rochester Hills resident, claimed her $1 million Powerball prize just hours before it expired, nearly a year after the July 14, 2025 drawing. The Theresa Lynchosky Powerball win came after she matched five white balls and waited for personal reasons before cashing in.
Key Takeaways
- Theresa Lynchosky, 63, of Rochester Hills claimed a $1 million Powerball prize hours before the one-year deadline.
- She matched white balls 8, 12, 45, 46 and 63 in the July 14, 2025 drawing but not the Powerball.
- Lynchosky bought the ticket online, kept the win secret for a year for personal reasons, and plans to save the money.
- Unclaimed Powerball prizes in Michigan go to the state School Aid Fund after expiration.
Who claimed the $1 million Powerball prize?
According to the Detroit News, Theresa Lynchosky of Oakland County recently visited Michigan Lottery headquarters to cash her ticket. The Lottery announced the claim on July 15, 2026.
Her ticket matched five white balls—8, 12, 45, 46 and 63—in the July 14, 2025 Powerball drawing. She did not match the Powerball. Powerball.com puts the odds of that $1 million prize at about 1 in 11.7 million.
Why did Theresa Lynchosky wait a year to claim?
Lynchosky said she delayed the claim for personal reasons and told no one until the week before she collected, when she shared the news with her best friend.
"I was so happy to finally share the news with someone and I'm even happier to be here claiming my prize after waiting a year," she said in comments released by the Lottery.
She regularly plays Powerball online. The day after the drawing, a notification on her Lottery account said she had won $1 million. She took a screenshot and kept checking it because she could not believe it was real.
In a Michigan Lottery release quoted by the Detroit Free Press, she added that she still does not have the words to describe what winning means and feels grateful and blessed.
What happens if a Powerball prize expires?
Powerball tickets in Michigan are valid for one year from the draw date. Prizes left unclaimed after that deadline expire and go to the state School Aid Fund, ClickOnDetroit reported.
The Michigan Lottery returns up to 27 cents of every dollar spent on lottery games to that fund, according to lottery spokespeople cited by the Detroit News.
Lynchosky said she plans to save her winnings. Another $1 million winning ticket from the same July 14, 2025 drawing was purchased in Arizona.
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