A lucky college student has scooped an astonishing USD 30,000 on a lottery scratch card given to her by her parents as a Christmas stocking filler.

The unnamed 18-year-old from Germantown, Maryland State, USA, said: “It was shocking and a weird feeling. It was surreal.”

Her dad, who had bought the cards at a store in Montgomery County, explained: “We gave them to her as a stocking stuffer.”

The store is set to receive a bonus of USD 300 (GBP 250) from lottery officials.

The canny student plans to put her prize money – worth around GBP 25,000 – into savings.

Maryland Lottery said in a statement obtained by Newsflash on 9th January: “An 18-year-old Germantown woman came to Maryland Lottery headquarters with her parents in tow, eager to share her exciting experience. The Lottery novice won big the first time she played a scratch-off and was claiming a $30,000 top prize on the Peppermint Payout game.

“For her first Christmas as an adult, the lucky woman received a few scratch-offs from her parents. She had luck on three of the instant tickets, winning $1, $2, and $30,000.

“The Montgomery County resident is a college student majoring in Digital Arts. She plans to put the scratch-off prize into her savings account.

“Another winner in this story was Shoppers #2362 located at 18066 Mateny Road in Germantown. The Montgomery County store will receive a $300 bonus from the Lottery for selling a $30,000 top-prize winning instant ticket.

“The Peppermint Payout game is still loaded with sweet prizes. Since it went on sale on Oct. 17, players have found four of the $3 game’s eight $30,000 top prizes. The game also has more than 450,000 unclaimed prizes ranging from $3 to $500.”