SUN CITY â If youâre trying for a big score in the Illinois Lottery, Sun Cityâs Bill Reining has a suggestion for you:
Buy your next ticket at a store youâve never been to before, or at least one where youâve never bought a lottery ticket before.
This technique worked for Reining on April 26 for a prize of $325,000.
A seven-year resident of Neighborhood 28, Reining has been an on-and-off player in the Illinois Lotteryâs Lucky Day Lotto, one of the most popular games in the stateâs program.
âI donât buy a ticket every day or week, but I go fairly frequently,â he said. âI like the fun of testing my luck without investing a lot of money.â
Reining usually buys tickets at a couple of establishments he visits regularly in the Huntley area. But on April 26, he decided to go to Drendelâs Corner at Route 47 and Del Webb Blvd.
âI donât recall why; I just decided to buy a ticket there for the first time,â he said. âI bought a $4 ticket in the Lucky Day Lottery, which used to be called the Little Lottery. I knew I could check my ticket that night online to get the results. I was really surprised to see I matched all five numbers. I knew the top prize was about $325,000, but I didnât find out until later that I was the only winner that week.â
After the IRS took the first $100,000 out of the prize, Reining took home $225,000. Drendelâs Corner got 1 percent of the prize, or $3,125. The âcheck is in the mailâ notice arrived from lottery officials last Friday, June 7.
Bill and his wife, Jacqueline, are quiet, laid back, unassuming people who are happy and excited to experience this windfall, but they are doing it in a very quiet, low-key way.
âI donât want to make a big deal out of it. I donât like to promote myself,â he said.
âWe havenât had a big party with a lot of friends and family,â Jacqueline said. âOur family members are very exÂŹcited about it, but we havenât had any big celebration.â
Bill is a retired service manager in the HVAC industry. He likes to fish and play golf.
âAfter I won, I went fishing with friends up in Wisconsin,â he said. âBut it was more of a pre-planned trip, not a recreational reaction to winning the money.â
Reining said he won $2,500 several years ago in the Little Lotto.
âIâve also gotten my money back a few times by winning small prizes, but now Iâve really improved my profits,â he joked. âI also donât pick my own numbers. I just use the quick-pix method and let the computer select the numbers for me.â
He said he plans to pay off personal debts and help his three children pay off theirs.
âI have a son out in Boston who is starting work on his doctorate in psychology, and he has some outstanding student loans. We also have some health issues to take care of. This will make our retireÂŹment and my kidsâ futures a little happier, enjoyable, and less stressful,â he said.
Asked if he plans big vacations or major purchases, he said, âNo, at least not now.â