A string of numbers spotted on license plates and elsewhere turned into two $50,000 Pick 5 wins
NORFOLK, VA – A Norfolk woman kept noticing the same numbers popping up in places such as license plates, decided to play them twice in the Virginia Lottery’s Pick 5 drawing and watched the hunch turn into a $100,000 win.
The anonymous player selected 0-8-1-1-6 for the Aug. 12 night drawing after repeatedly encountering numbers that inspired the combination.
She wagered $2 on the same set of numbers, creating two plays for the drawing.
When 0-8-1-1-6 came out in exact order, both plays won.
Each was worth $50,000, giving the Norfolk woman a combined $100,000 prize.
The winner learned about her good fortune after receiving an email from the Virginia Lottery following the drawing.
Seeing the string of zeroes in the prize amount initially left her thinking she was looking at the result twice before she began celebrating, according to the Lottery.
The woman chose to claim her winnings anonymously. Virginia law allows Lottery prize winners to withhold their identities from public disclosure.
Pick 5 drawings take place twice daily, at 1:59 p.m. and 11 p.m.
A $1 play can win a $50,000 top prize by matching all five numbers in exact order. The odds of doing so are 1 in 100,000.
The Virginia Lottery reported generating more than $914 million for K-12 education during Fiscal Year 2026. Norfolk received more than $35.1 million in Lottery funding for K-12 education during the last fiscal year.
Key Points
- A Norfolk woman repeatedly noticed certain numbers in everyday places and used them to play 0-8-1-1-6 in the Aug. 12 Pick 5 night drawing.
- She played the same combination twice, and each play won $50,000 for a combined $100,000 prize.
- The winner chose to remain anonymous, which Virginia law permits Lottery winners to do.