Salyersville woman wins big lottery ticket for birthday

MAGOFFIN COUNTY, KY (LEX 18). This year, the birthday gift for a Salyersville woman who won $50,000 was not just a cake, but a gifted Kentucky Lottery scratch-off ticket.

Brianna Vanhoose, who doesn’t usually play the lottery, won a $50 lottery ticket given to her by her aunt.

“I bought two tickets, scratched one and gave it to her for her birthday,” her aunt said.

Vanhoose discovered she had won after staying at her mother’s house. Her aunt took home the $75 prize, and Vanhoose initially thought she wouldn’t win anything.

“I scratched him and I saw him and I just ran,” she said.

Vanhoose took home $36,000 after taxes after visiting Kentucky Lottery headquarters in mid-October. Even then it was difficult for her to believe in her victory.

“I still don’t know what to think,” she said. “It still doesn’t feel real.”