We could all use a little extra money—especially $5 million. And when the lottery gets that high, some of us will do anything to win it…including spending our days going in and out of various stores to find the winning ticket.

That’s just what North Carolina resident Kevin Clark did. While some might think that sounds like a waste of time, it actually paid off for him (literally).

In just four hours, he went to 40 stores—yes 40!—that sold Mega Cash tickets and bought every single one in stock. At $20 each, this was no inexpensive feat, especially with something so little as just a mere hunch that it was somewhere in his state.

“I had a real good feeling it was going to be in the western part of the state,” Clark said.

When he found himself holding the winning ticket, he couldn’t believe his eyes.

“I scanned it with my phone and it told me to go see a retailer,” he said. “So, I scratched it off, and when I scratched it off I couldn’t believe it. I started shaking. And then I cried.”

For Kevin Clark of Candler, winning $5 million from the $5,000,000 Mega Cash scratch-off game will allow him to pursue his dream of investing. “My biggest plans with the majority of the money is to invest in real estate and some small businesses,” he said. https://t.co/EBh1kjs3AU pic.twitter.com/Ma9fb2xyxo

— NC Education Lottery (@nclottery) July 29, 2020

We’re sure we would’ve done the same, especially after going to so many stores to find it!

In the end, Clark took home about $2.1 million after taxes were taken out. (We’re kind of curious how much he spent on those $20 tickets though! Either way, that’s quite a lump sum for just four hours of “work.” )

Even if he hasn’t won, the money he spent on the tickets wasn’t money wasted. North Carolina puts money received from scratch-off tickets toward a good cause: funding state education, whether it’s school repairs or scholarships. In just one year, the NC Education Lottery received $729.8 million.

Clark cuts grass for a living, so receiving a couple of million dollars was quite the raise for him. He says he will be using the money to invest in real estate and small businesses; something he’s always dreamed of doing but never had the means for.

Have you ever gone through these kinds of lengths to find a winning lottery ticket? What would you do if you suddenly were a millionaire?