Man threw away $153,000 lottery ticket

SHEFFIELD, England, April 23 (UPI) -- A British postal worker said his marriage ended and he has become a laughing stock at work because he threw away a $153,000 scratch-off lottery ticket.

Cemal Celikkanat, 38, a driver for the Royal Mail, said he thought the dollar amounts on the scratch-off card he purchased at Charnock News and Booze in Sheffield had to be in a row to win, but the card pays out for any three-of-a-kind dollar amounts, the Sheffield Telegraph reported Friday.

"When I found out I felt dizzy and dropped to my knees -- it was like being hit over the head. I threw away 100,000 pounds ($153,000)," he said. "I feel so terrible, I think about it every day, it's had a massive impact on my life."

He said he tried to retrieve the ticket from the trash at the convenience store but was told it had already been sent to an incinerator.

"I have left my wife -- we were having financial difficulties and this was the final straw. My colleagues tease me saying I must be rich because I can afford to throw away a fortune," he said. "When I bought my first scratch card six years ago you had to have three in a row to win. I assumed that applied to all the games I've played since then -- I can't bear to think about how much money I've thrown away."