California Man Wins $11 Million on Lottery Ticket From September
COLLEEN MCEDWARDS, CNN ANCHOR: In California -- Ruben Montoya (ph) is his name, and he should be mighty thankful that he is a bit of a pack rat.</s>CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: That's right: Otherwise, he wouldn't have such a big bank account this morning. CNN's Anne McDermott explains.</s>ANNE MCDERMOTT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Want to be rich and regal, or just rich and richer?</s>BILL GATES: Absolutely.</s>MCDERMOTT: Well, you could win the lottery. Ruben and Michelle Montoya did back in September, and he even checked his ticket when the results were announced, but somehow he thought he'd lost.</s>RUBEN MONTOYA: I missed it.</s>MCDERMOTT: Wednesday, he check it again when lottery officials warned that there was just one day left to claim the $11 million prize. So you held onto a ticket for six months that you thought was a losing ticket?</s>R. MONTOYA: I don't know, I just...</s>MICHELLE MONTOYA (ph): He likes to keep things.</s>R. MONTOYA: I'm a pack rat.</s>MCDERMOTT: Well, good thing: Otherwise, your wife might have made you go on Regis.</s>REGIS PHILBIN, HOST, "WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE": He's won a million dollars.</s>MCDERMOTT: Of course, Montoya would have had to appear on the show 11 times in a row.</s>PHILBIN: Won a million -- won a million -- won a million -- won a million.</s>MCDERMOTT: Not necessary now -- he's got it, but he doesn't know how he's going to spend it: yachts, cars, jewels? Well maybe. Or he could do as a former lottery winner did.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Play Lotto and boogie down: It's party time.</s>MCDERMOTT: Well, it took awhile, but now it's party time here too. And the Montoyas agree with California lottery officials, who say you can't win if you don't play. And they add, you can't win if you forget to cash in. Anne McDermott, CNN, Los Angeles.</s>MCEDWARDS: People around the country checking their old tickets now. I can hear it: I can hear the wallets opening, the cookie jars opening.</s>LIN: Yes, and I'll bet his first investment will be a personal organizer.</s>MCEDWARDS: Absolutely.</s>LIN: He knows what he's missing out on.