Maryland man turns one $2 Powerball ticket into $50K payday

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1 min read
August 29, 2026

Quick Pick bought on the way to work delivers five-figure win

TEMPLE HILLS, MD – A Prince George’s County man’s $2 Powerball ticket turned into a $50,000 payday after a quick stop on his way to work landed him Maryland’s only third-tier winning ticket in the Aug. 12 drawing.

Kurshad Alam of Temple Hills realized before work that he had not entered the Powerball drawing, according to the Maryland Lottery.

He stopped at Discount Tobacco Zone at 3905 Branch Avenue in Temple Hills and purchased a single $2 Quick Pick ticket.

Alam then continued to his job at a nearby mall without knowing the ticket would soon be worth $50,000.

His Quick Pick matched four of the five white balls and the red Powerball, securing the game’s third-tier prize.

Alam learned about his win the next day when he checked the ticket at a Lottery retailer.

The Maryland Lottery said 86 players nationwide matched four white balls and the Powerball to win $50,000 in the drawing.

Alam was the only Maryland player to win at that prize level.

He claimed the $50,000 prize Wednesday.

Alam told Lottery officials he plans to place the money into savings until he needs it.

The winning ticket was purchased during a Powerball run that pushed the jackpot to $1.04 billion before a ticket sold in Illinois captured the top prize Aug. 12.

The jackpot ranked as the eighth largest in Powerball history, according to the Maryland Lottery.

For Alam, however, the payoff came from the single $2 Quick Pick he grabbed before heading to work — a ticket that ultimately returned $50,000.


Key Points

  • Kurshad Alam of Temple Hills won $50,000 from a single $2 Powerball Quick Pick.
  • The winning ticket was purchased at Discount Tobacco Zone at 3905 Branch Avenue in Temple Hills.
  • Alam was Maryland’s only $50,000 third-tier winner in the Aug. 12 Powerball drawing.

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