View Full Version : Ever know anyone who won Publishers Clearinghouse?
Now I do. An 84-year-old gentleman my DH works with p/t at the golf course. They play together too.
They are coming to his home to present him the check today. DH is going over to be with him to make sure it's all on the up and up. The friend has been scammed before.
If it's the real thing it will be an interesting story. He will be getting half a million clear. This guy lives in a crappy trailer, hasn't paid his taxes in ten years, got swindled last year by his own grandson & lost his car in that process.
I'll report back. But curious if anyone has ever known a winner.
iris lilies
10-19-21, 11:23am
Cool! But it sounds as though, even if real, this man is subject to swindling him out of the cash.
no do not know winners of Pub Clearing
house money. It seems super scammy to me.
happystuff
10-19-21, 11:23am
I hope it is not a scam, but I know they didn't used to "give notice" to the winners as they wanted the surprise effect for promotional purposes. But maybe that has changed.
I didn't know the person, but probably over 10 years now, someone two blocks down the street won! It was one of those surprise knocks on the door after the Superbowl and several people in the neighborhood apparently went down to watch and got free merchandise, etc. Apparently, the person did not act "surprised" enough, so they reshot the presentation using the person's friend. LOL.
Teacher Terry
10-19-21, 11:42am
Let me know what happens. Hoping it’s for real.
Yeah, it was a scam. He got another call this morning, this time from another city. He's just hanging up on them now. Poor guy---he had high hopes for a day.
Apparently they do NOT call ahead if you win but either send a certified letter or just show up at your door, just like they show on tv.
ApatheticNoMore
10-19-21, 1:09pm
Wow, would be better to just buy lottery tickets it seems. You are not going to win much, but sometimes someone actually does.
frugal-one
10-19-21, 2:38pm
Went to a potluck and one gal was telling how she was at home and PCH showed up in a limo, flowers, etc. She was screaming and called hubby...neighbors were out etc. Turns out her boss (who was a prankster) set this all up. The way she told it .. it was hysterical. Imagine pulling that prank off! They all had a good laugh. It would be hard to beat that one.
catherine
10-19-21, 2:50pm
That is such a shame about the scam. How heartless can people be??
I enjoy watching "My Lottery Dream Home" on HGTV but IRL I don't buy lottery tickets. I'm too superstitious about them.
gimmethesimplelife
10-19-21, 4:54pm
About entering sweepstakes/contests, I've won a few things before myself. A DVD player in 2008 from Gateway Community College - long story there. I don't play the Arizona scratch offs as I personally don't believe in gambling. I do however log onto lucktastic.com and play their free/supported by advertising scratch offs. Haven't won anything there yet but I'm not too far off from a $25 giftcard to Lowe's - which is going straight to the yard. Rob
No, but I knew two lottery winners where we lived in Chicago.
ToomuchStuff
10-20-21, 6:03am
Went to a potluck and one gal was telling how she was at home and PCH showed up in a limo, flowers, etc. She was screaming and called hubby...neighbors were out etc. Turns out her boss (who was a prankster) set this all up. The way she told it .. it was hysterical. Imagine pulling that prank off! They all had a good laugh. It would be hard to beat that one.
I never understood what was so funny about these pranks?
I received one of those joke lottery scratch off tickets, that says you won 10K, when I was involved in a lawsuit, where one of the defendants is a multi million dollar corporation with $500 an hour attorneys working for them, then law firms on retainer. That pays a lot of legal bills for someone close to being homeless.
I have bought lottery tickets. (when it gets big, if my father can't get out, he will ask me to pick up his weekly ones. Mom prefers to gamble at the boat) I've known a few winners, but have never had that luck.
rosarugosa
10-20-21, 7:06am
My DH won $10K twice. The first time we had a very nice splurge for ourselves. The second time we were a little bit older and wiser, and we paid down a chunk of our mortgage. He's had some smaller wins of $500 and $1000 here and there. Despite his luck, I suspect he's given them more than he has gotten over the years, but the clear winner here is me, because he shares his winnings and I almost never buy tickets. I should also mention that he gambles with his allowance, not the grocery money or anything like that. :)
catherine
10-20-21, 9:12am
My coworker, a divorced receptionist who had limited means, used to manage the weekly lotto ticket pool she had with her Thursday night nail salon friends. They won the 3M NJ lottery, but the group had to share the winnings with another winner, and the nail salon group was made up of 13 people, so the net winnings per person were nice, but not life-changing. My coworker dumped her boyfriend because he said she should have claimed it was her mothers ticket that won, not the group's. No one would know, because she never made copies of the numbers. Money can bring out the best or the worst in people.
My two other stories of lottery winnings: My mother's husband (she remarried when I was in college, and the guy was a jerk, so I would never call him my stepfather)--bought two tickets, same number one time. They were both in the crapper at the time, but those numbers came up. It did relieve the immediate money pressures--I think it was $3000 back in 1977.
When DH and I were in the crapper with the 4 kids, he bought a lottery ticket that came up and we won $1750. You would have thought it was a million. Do you think we'd save it? No--DH blew it by buying each kid something, and for me he bought a wooden swing for the backyard. That swing is still in the backyard in NJ and now my son and his family are enjoying it. So at least, while not a prudent purchase back then, wound up really providing hours and hours of enjoyment.
Oh, one more. My DH gave me a big party for my 60th birthday by taking me to Mohegan Sun in CT. We went to the casino for a couple of hours and I won $1500 at a slot machine. That was a great birthday present! I also left my phone in the ladies room there that night and someone returned it to security, so that was like winning twice.
I won a couple of dollars a few years ago.
You made me think. I know two people who were struck by lightning, but nobody who won big in any lottery or sweepstakes.
I have not know much of anyone who has won much from PCH, the lottery, or legal gambling, but there was a fellow from my younger days who had a reputation for winning various contests. Some of the details escape me, but there was talk that it was rather uncanny. He was a bank manager and lived in a small humble home with his wife and seemed to be a bit of a miser. Rumor was, when he passed awy that his estate was quite enormous.
I won $30 on my birthday once. I rarely buy tickets, so that was it for "big winnings."
I have not know much of anyone who has won much from PCH, the lottery, or legal gambling, but there was a fellow from my younger days who had a reputation for winning various contests. Some of the details escape me, but there was talk that it was rather uncanny. He was a bank manager and lived in a small humble home with his wife and seemed to be a bit of a miser. Rumor was, when he passed awy that his estate was quite enormous.
That’s not how I thought that story was going to end. As soon as I got to bank manager I thought it was going to end with ‘and it turned out he was stealing from the bank and telling people he’d won this or that contest to justify some lavish new thing he had bought’
That’s not how I thought that story was going to end. As soon as I got to bank manager I thought it was going to end with ‘and it turned out he was stealing from the bank and telling people he’d won this or that contest to justify some lavish new thing he had bought’
Sorry to disappoint, as that would have made a better ending if not a movie theme. I suppose one could speculate that he just didn't get caught.
Sorry to disappoint, as that would have made a better ending if not a movie theme. I suppose one could speculate that he just didn't get caught.
That’s an even better movie! It could end with his widowed wife under an umbrella on a tropical beach somewhere having frozen drinks with the lawn boy.
At my previous job, we had an elderly man who was our security man. He has the shakes so bad he can't fill out the PCH forms, tear the stickers, etc. He asked me to do this, so I graciously agreed. I didn't realize I had entered into a life agreement for this project. He is just sure he is on an elite list to win the big prize. When they follow up with additional mailings he is convinced I didn't send them in quick enough. Most of the time I mail them the next day. He followed me to my new employment bringing me over the latest forms to enter.
He asked me to "air mail" his entry - I tried to convince him 1st class is airmail...but I don't think it clicked. He says if he wins, he will give me 1/2. I am ready to tell him to find a new
helper, and I will take my chances on 1/2 of his winnings!
It sounds like you've been very kind and patient, Greg!
is he using the forms to maintain a human contact with you and not understanding what he is doing?
happystuff
4-6-22, 10:11am
is he using the forms to maintain a human contact with you and not understanding what he is doing?
This was my first thought as well.
iris lilies
4-6-22, 11:49am
My mom, an educated person, would complete all those publisher clearing house forms, and that was back in the day when she had possession of all her faculties. I thought it was such a waste of time, but she was retired so I guess it was a fun for her in thinking about what she do with millions of dollars.
It sounds like you've been very kind and patient, Greg!
Yup, he brought me another one today...!
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.2.5 Copyright © 2025 vBulletin Solutions Inc. All rights reserved.