Douglas Dubose of Pembroke dug up a delightful prize recently playing a Georgia Lottery instant ticket game. Dubose won $10,000 playing the 100X the Money scratcher.

The ticket was purchased at El Cheapo, 4027 Highway 280 E. in Pembroke.

Dubose, a 39-year-old feed store owner, said that he was making his usual stop at the convenience store when he purchased the winning ticket.

“It was a surprise,” he said. “I didn’t think anything was going to happen.”

Upon discovering that he had won, Dubose said he immediately phoned his wife to share the good news.

“I just went out to the parking lot and called my wife,” he said. “She was really happy.”

Dubose said he plans to use his winnings to pay some bills.

The lucky winner claimed his prize March 28 at the Georgia Lottery District Office in Savannah.

Since its first year, the Georgia Lottery Corp. has returned more than $18.1 billion to the state of Georgia for education. All Georgia Lottery profits go to pay for specific educational programs, including Georgia’s HOPE Scholarship Program and Georgia’s Pre-K Program. More than 1.7 million students have received HOPE, and more than 1.4 million 4-year-olds have attended the statewide, voluntary prekindergarten program.

For more information on the Georgia Lottery Corp., please visit www.galottery.com.