Lottery Winner Quick to Claim Record Payout

Too excited to sleep after finding out he won the $116-million Big Game drawing, Randy Kerfoot rushed to Atlanta from his Tennessee home Wednesday to claim his prize. Then he called his boss and said, “I’m out of here.”

Kerfoot, 41, will be able to bank about $39 million after choosing the cash option on his Quik Pik ticket. His lump-sum winnings come to about $59 million, or $38.9 million after taxes.

Georgia Lottery Corp. officials said it was the largest payout to a single winner since the state lottery began in 1993. The Big Game is played in seven states: Massachusetts, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Virginia and New Jersey.

Kerfoot, who lives in East Ridge, Tenn., worked as parts and service director for an Infiniti dealership in Chattanooga. He said he and his wife, Sandy, checked the numbers repeatedly after Tuesday night’s drawing to make sure they had the winning ticket.

“It took it a while to really sink in, and I don’t think anybody took their eyes off that ticket all night,” he told reporters during a news conference with Georgia Lottery President Rebecca Paul.

Kerfoot said he intends to begin enjoying life immediately now that he is a wealthy man. His wife will continue working for a Toyota dealership but only until she trains someone to replace her as controller and office manager, he said.

The first major purchase for the couple may be two new cars. A new house also may be in the offing.

Some of the winnings also will go to charity, including the Ronald McDonald House, they said. The Kerfoots met as teenagers working at a McDonald’s restaurant.

They have two daughters, ages 18 and 16, and a granddaughter.