The wait is over.  A Joppa man, accompanied by his wife, came to Maryland Lottery headquarters in the pouring rain on Friday to claim the $1,000-a-week Cash4Life prize from the March 27 drawing.

The happy winner learned of his Lottery luck when he went online to check his Pick 3 numbers. The Harford County resident saw that a winning Cash4Life ticket was sold at the Royal Farms in Joppa, which is where he buys his Lottery games.

“I checked the Cash4Life Cash Ball first and saw that I didn’t match that,” said the 50-year-old retail worker. “I figured I didn’t win anything, but kept checking my numbers and one by one, I matched the rest of them!”

The couple, still in shock from the win, took a few days to decide between the $1,000 a week annuity or the $1 million cash option. The winner signed the quick-pick ticket and kept it hidden under the mattress. Once they decided on the cash option, the couple made the trip to claim their prize.

Mr. “Loving Life” already has plans for his winnings. He will pay bills, save some of the money and take a vacation.

“It still hasn’t really hit us how much we won,” said the winner’s wife.

The lucky MD Lottery retailer also wins. Royal Farms #70 at 500 Joppa Farm Road will receive a $2,500 bonus from the Lottery for selling the winning second-tier ticket in the $2 game.

This is the first second-tier Cash4Life winner in Maryland since the game launched in the state in January 2016. In May 2016, a Frederick woman became the first Marylander to win the game’s top prize of $1,000 a day for life.

Nine state lotteries participate in Cash4Life: Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Maryland, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Tennessee. Since the game began in June 2014, Cash4Life has had 19 top-prize winners and 37 second-tier winners. Six other prize levels range from $2 to $2,500. The overall odds of winning any prize are 1 in 8.