SIKESTON MAN WINS TRIP TO SUPER BOWL

SIKESTON -- Ira Spencer Jr. wondered what he could have done wrong when Sikeston police came to his house late last week.

"The police came by here and knocked on my door. I said, `Oh no, what have I done?'"

Turned out, what Spencer had done was win the Missouri Lottery's SuperCash SuperBash promotion.

Spencer, along with three other individuals including an unemployed Fredericktown truck driver and three lottery retailers each won $14,800 Super Sunday packages. The packages include a trip for two to the upcoming Super Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., and $10,000 in spending money.

Spencer said he was "shocked" to have won the lottery prize.

"I guess it has to be a New Year's present," he said Friday.

Spencer, 45, works part-time at a Sikeston restaurant. He said he plans to put some of his winnings in a savings account and use the rest to make repairs to his house.

Although he'll be going to the Super Bowl, Spencer admitted he's not a big football fan. "I mostly like basketball and baseball."

Still, he said, he's looking forward to going to Pasadena. "I have never been to California. I have always wanted to go to California."

Spencer said he regularly plays the lottery, usually spending about $14 to $18 a day on tickets.

He said he plans to continue playing the lottery.

During the 3-week promotion, which ran from Nov. 23 through Dec. 18, players deposited non-winning SuperCash tickets into official entry boxes at participating retail locations.

On Wednesday, four tickets were drawn at the Missouri Lottery headquarters in Jefferson City. Approximately 650,000 entries were submitted for the drawing.