A Michigan man is a millionaire after playing the lottery "on a whim." 

Zach Birchmeier, of Fowler, Michigan, won a $1 million prize in the Michigan Lottery's Sept. 23 Powerball drawing. He also played the Power Play, which doubled his winnings. The Power Play applies to any non-jackpot prize, the Michigan Lottery said, up to $2 million. 

"I don't usually play Powerball, but I decided to buy a ticket on a whim while I was online," said Birchmeier, according to a news release from the Michigan Lottery. "After the drawing, I saw an email from the Lottery with instructions on claiming my prize. When I logged in to my account and saw $2 million pending, I was in shock!" 

Birchmeier, 31, said that the win still feels "surreal." He said he plans to build a home and make some investments with his winnings. 

Michigan residents have had some lottery luck in 2023. 

Just this year, 12 separate million-dollar Powerball tickets have been sold in the state, according to CBS Detroit. In Detroit alone, four million-dollar Powerball tickets have been sold since 2012. It's not just Powerball winners, either: Just recently, CBS Detroit reported that a 61-year-old woman won $2 million in the Michigan Lottery's Magnificent 7s instant game. 

The current Powerball jackpot stands at $1.4 billion. The next drawing will take place on Saturday evening. This Powerball jackpot has made history as the first time back-to-back jackpot runs have generated grand prizes exceeding $1 billion, CBS Detroit reported on Wednesday. The last Powerball jackpot winner, from California, won $1.08 billion. 

    In:
  • Powerball
  • Michigan Lottery
  • Lottery
  • Michigan
Kerry Breen

Kerry Breen is a news editor and reporter for CBS News. Her reporting focuses on current events, breaking news and substance use.

Disclaimer: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author. Reposting this article is solely for the purpose of information dissemination and does not constitute any investment advice. If there is any infringement, please contact us immediately. We will make corrections or deletions as necessary. Thank you.