A whirlwind road trip to see country music star Zach Bryan in concert ended on an even higher note for a Southern California mother and her son thanks to a winning California Lottery Scratcher ticket.
Danielle Magalen and AJ Tamraz of Laguna Niguel drove 430 miles to Sacramento on Saturday to see Bryan perform at Golden 1 Center that night as a birthday gift to AJ, who turned 18 in October.
AJ says it was a great show – but a very quick turnaround. On Sunday, they were driving back home on the 5 Freeway when they encountered heavy traffic through the Central Valley.
“We both had to use the restroom, so we stopped at a Love’s truck stop in this small town, Santa Nella,” AJ told KTLA.
They planned to use the facilities, buy a couple of bottles of water, and then quickly get back on the road as they still had a long drive ahead.
Playing the lottery wasn’t originally on their minds. That was until Danielle noticed a new holiday-themed Peppermint Payout Scratcher ticket.
“She comes back out the car and gives me a $20 bill, so I walk back in and go to the vending machine,” AJ recounted.