Man buys lottery ticket to get change for pizza tip — and hits $1 million jackpot

A man who bought a California Lottery scratch-off ticket to break a $100 bill for a tip on his pizza order came away $1 million richer, officials reported.

McKinley Nelson ordered a pizza for his wife but found that he needed change to leave a cash tip when they arrived at a Round Table restaurant in Winters to pick it up, the California Lottery said in a Tuesday, June 10, news release.

So he went next door to Winters Wine & Liquor before picking up their food, lottery officials said.

“I had a $100 bill. So, I got two tickets,” Nelson told lottery officials. “I think it was $20, and I went to the truck and started scratching.”

One, a Loteria Grande scratcher, seemed promising.

“I think this one’s a million, but I’m not sure,” Nelson said he told his wife.

He was correct.

“So, my wife almost had a heart attack,” Nelson said. “And then we had to go in and buy the pizza. It was all because of her, she’s the one that likes the pizza.”

Nelson, 72, a retired veteran, plans to use the money to pay off his home, put some in savings and buy a camper van, lottery officials said. He said he’s been playing the lottery for 40 years.

“It took a long time to win,” he said.

Winters is about a 30-mile drive west from Sacramento.

This story was originally published June 10, 2025 at 1:13 PM with the headline "Man buys lottery ticket to get change for pizza tip — and hits $1 million jackpot."