AUBURN HILLS, MI – Imagine knowing you’ve won a fortune–only to realize a chunk of it has gone before you see it.

That’s the bittersweet reality for a lucky Oakland County man who scooped up $1 million in the Michigan Lottery's ‘Lucky Match’ instant game this week.

But he had to settle for a significantly lesser amount after choosing the lump sum, and the amount will shock you.

The 29-year-old, opting for anonymity, experienced a dream come true with a $10 scratch-off ticket purchased from the BP gas station at 3700 Joslyn Road.

“I bought two instant games after work one night and scratched them when I got home,” he shared.

The first ticket was a dud, but the second held the shock of a lifetime.

“I started scratching the ticket and won on the first line I scratched. I thought the ticket was fake when I revealed the ‘1MIL’ symbol, so I scanned it on the Lottery app.”

“When confetti came up with the amount of $1 million, I thought I was dreaming! I yelled: ‘Wake me up! This can’t be real!’”

In a whirl of excitement, he called his family to share the unbelievable news.

The reality of his win was confirmed when he visited the Michigan Lottery headquarters.

He chose a one-time lump sum payment of about $693,000 instead of the full annuity payment of $1 million of up to 30 years.

His plans with the winnings? Starting a business and helping his family.

Lucky Match, launched in September, has been a golden ticket for players, dishing out over $8 million in wins.

The game offers prizes ranging from $10 to $1 million, with more than $43 million in prizes still up for grabs.

That includes two $1 million top prizes, 44 $10,000 prizes, and 117 $2,000 prizes.

In 2022, instant games were a big hit, with players winning over $1.7 billion.

For those feeling lucky, instant games are available at 10,500 retailers across the state.

As the latest winner proves, sometimes dreams do come true – even if they're a little less than expected after taxes!