I won £176,000 lottery jackpot but I was BANNED from taking home £50,000 of it because of bizarre ‘winners rule’

A mum who won a £176,000 lottery jackpot has been banned from taking home a £50,000 chunk of it due to a bizarre ‘winners’ rule’.

Ashley Smith of Mason County, Kentucky won the $224,000 (£176,000) prize in an online lottery game last week.

1

She said, “I was just waiting for the kids to go to sleep and decided to play.”

The mother of two screamed and jumped out of bed as the Bank Buster jackpot popped up on her screen.

Her husband said: “I thought she was just faking. I called my mom and she couldn’t believe it either.”

The next morning, the whole family drove to the Kentucky Lottery headquarters to collect Ashley’s prize.

But Ashley took away just $160,409 (£126,000) of the $224,000 jackpot due to a little-known rule.

Lottery winners in America can either collect their winnings in one big lump sum or split them up into tax-free annuities over 29 years.

Ashley chose to ditch the lump sum — and as a result, had to pay $63,000 in taxes.

Her family plans to spend most of the jackpot on household bills – and fixing her car after Ashley’s husband hit a deer.

A man says he’s become the world’s most eligible bachelor after winning an £8million lottery jackpot – until he met his policewoman girlfriend at a traffic stop.

A mum who thought she was scammed after winning £60,000 in the lottery reveals the first thing she did after winning the prize.