A Rockford-area man turned a stop for a scratch-off into a life-changing windfall, scoring a $1 million prize on a $25 "1,000,000 Crossword 50X" instant ticket. He bought the ticket at Gas Depot at 4900 W. State St. in Rockford, scratched it, then had the cashier confirm on the spot that he had hit a top prize. The winner, who chose to stay anonymous, says he plans to share part of the money with family and is eyeing a performance car with some of the winnings.
As reported by FOX 32 Chicago, the moment felt almost unreal to him: "I had to do a double take—I simply couldn’t believe it." The station notes that the Illinois Lottery provided the prize details, confirms the ticket was from the $25 Crossword 50X game and adds that the store validated the win right at the register.
Retailer bonus and how the Lottery handles big wins
The Gas Depot that sold the ticket is not walking away empty-handed. The store will receive a $10,000 bonus, equal to 1% of the $1 million prize, a standard payout the Illinois Lottery describes in its press materials. In a press release via Illinois Lottery, the agency routinely highlights the one-percent retailer payout and reminds players that winners should sign the back of their ticket and contact the Lottery to start the claims process.
About the Crossword 50X ticket
The $25 "1,000,000 Crossword 50X" game launched in December 2025 and comes with overall starting odds of about 1 in 2.97 for any prize, according to game-tracking data. Tracker sites such as ScratchSmarter report that only a handful of the top $1,000,000 prizes were printed and that several large prizes remain unclaimed in the game.
How winners claim and next steps
The Illinois Lottery typically urges winners to sign the back of their ticket, tuck it away in a safe place and call the Lottery's player hotline to schedule a prize-claim appointment. Instant-ticket prizes generally must be claimed within one year of the game's announced end date. The Lottery's claim guidance also notes that prizes over $10,000 require a Claim Center appointment and that winners should consider getting financial and legal advice before they show up to claim, with full details available in the Illinois Lottery's claim instructions.
