A LUCKY man who became an overnight millionaire has vowed not to let his fortune go to his head and his location plays a key part in his strategy.
The lottery winner from Orangeburg, South Carolina, won $2million in a Mega Millions drawing in July.
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According to the South Carolina Education Lottery, he discovered his newfound fortune on July 14.
He told lottery officials that he stayed up late to watch the draw live on television and wrote out the winning numbers.
The man then found his quick-pick ticket and "went to bed a millionaire."
The winning ticket was bought from Gaz-Bah #14 in Orangeburg which received $20,000 as a prize for selling it.
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All but one of the man's numbers matched those which were drawn and an extra $1 decision at purchase saw his win doubled.
According to officials, "the odds of winning $2million playing Mega Millions are one in 12,607,306.
The Mega Millions winner will not follow in the footsteps of Powerball billionaire Edwin Castro.
The man who remains unidentified intends to keep his privacy by remaining anonymous.
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This is a right that he can have due to winning the lottery in South Carolina, a state that allows its winners to retain anonymity.
However, Castro from Altadena, California, became an overnight billionaire in February when he claimed the highest Powerball prize to date.
But, in the state of California, winners do not have a right to anonymity and so everyone knew Castro had opted for a lump sum of $997.6million.
South Carolina is just one of 11 states that allows lottery winners to remain anonymous.
Arizona, Delaware, Georgia, Kansas, Maryland, New Jersey, North Dakota, Ohio, Texas, and Virginia also allow such privacy.
Mission Legal Center has discussed why lottery winners may be safer by retaining their anonymity.
"When your identity is made public after a lottery win, you may face increased personal challenges and difficulties," the lawyers write.
"In some instances, lottery winners have been the targets of theft and violence.
"Lottery winners are also occasionally the victims of financial schemes and fraud.
"Because of this, it is understandable that lottery winners often wish to maintain their anonymity."
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Castro is currently locked in a legal battle over claims that he stole the winning $2billion lottery ticket.
The South Carolina lottery winner says he does not yet know what he will do with his fortune.
