Seriously, stunning figure, isn't it?

Robert and Tanya Harris – Portal, Georgia

Largest winners ever

Where the heck is Portal, GA

Robert – 47 – ex-iron worker

Tonya – 55

First choice - $167 now or $275 MM over 26 years

Second, what the heck do you do with it?

$275 MM

I'd give it all away

First, because generosity is one of my core values and this would be supreme way to live that out

Great joy in my life

Second, because I know what happens

Folks come at you from all fronts

Asking

Begging

Suing

claiming

Money absolutely brings out the worst in people

In AJC< day before the prize was awarded

Asked experts on what do if won that much

Basically, said Prepare yourself

Change phone, buy insurance to protect self from claims, set up account so that the money is not really in your name – blind trust

Because folks are gonna come at you

Usually, winning this much money ruins people's lives

Had a fellow in a congregation once – had a reasonably successful business

Experienced profound spiritual growth in that congregation over a number of years in different ways – was a generous guy – liked to help people

Inherited $50MM

Everything changed

Dropped out of church, cut himself off, did not return phone calls, stopped giving

Became an entirely different person

And frankly I do not want that to happen to me

So I would give it all away – offense – love giving

Defense – to keep from my life being screwed up

Most folks say, “I'll take the chance” - Not me

Foundation for scholarships – probably to Mercer – alma mater

Endowment for Murphy Harpst – forgotten

Fund some other ministries – no more than 5

Ever come into large amount of money in unexpected way?

What happened? What did you do with it? Folks come at you? Ruin relationships?



MISC

Andy – plane and houses – keep same percentages as now – give and live larger

Phil – set up stuff for kids

McDonalds instant winner gift to St Jude

It's what dreams are made of: buy anything you want and more. But for some, winning the lottery is not all champagne, limousines and mansions, and brings only misery and regret.

The sudden influx of cash can lead down a dark road to drugs, bankruptcy and even death. Why does blissful prosperity rarely ensue? Are those who win big truly destined for doom?

Uncovering the stories behind 10 real-life lucky ticket holders, E! sits with lottery winners, their friends and family, as well as financial planners and lottery experts, to find out why some who score jackpot rise to the top, while others fall rock bottom.

The lottery is a multi-billion dollar business that is fueled by the fantasy that one ticket can mean instant fortune and happiness. For lottery winners Jack Whittaker, William "Bud" Post, Victoria Zell and Billie Bob Harrell Jr., the dream of winning big-time bucks came true, but what they ended up losing as a result was tragic.

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Jack Whittaker of West Virginia won the largest Powerball jackpot in history, only to be robbed, confronted with serious legal issues and eventually have his family torn apart by alcohol and drug abuse.

Lottery winner Bud Post of Pennsylvania was almost murdered for his money when his own brother hired a hit-man to kill him in an attempt to rake in his cash.

Victoria Zell struck lottery gold in Minnesota but landed in jail after being found guilty on multiple counts of vehicular homicide.

And Texan lottery winner Billie Bob Harrell sadly ended his own life after out-of-control spending sprees and an affair left him deeply in debt and divorced.

"THS Investigates: The Curse of the Lottery" reveals the true stories behind these lottery winners and others who were transformed instantly from ordinary people into mega-millionaires. and the troubles that seem to have inevitably followed. In this two-hour episode:

 • Jewell Whittaker, wife of lottery winner Jack Whittaker — "If I'd known what was going to transpire, honestly, I would have torn the ticket up." • Gladys Burrous, daughter of lottery winner Bud Post — "He constantly changed his phone number because people would call him. As soon as they could find out his number, they'd call him and ask for money. He got crazy. He'd sit and stare at the surveillance cameras to be sure somebody wasn't going to sneak up there."

 • Gladys Burrous on her dad — "My dad got so much happier when he had nothing, after the money was gone. He realized what was important."

 • Amy Klobuchar, Hennepin County Prosecuting Attorney, on lottery winner Victoria Zell — "Here was a woman that had millions and millions of dollars that just came into her hands through the lottery. And instead of putting it into good work, she frittered it away. She frittered it away on meth. She frittered it away on cocaine. And she basically frittered away her life."

 • Daryl LePage, certified financial planner, on challenges that lottery winners face — "When you win a large sum of money, you would think that your problems go away. In reality, a new set of problems come in."

 • Daryl LePage on lottery winner Billie Bob Harrell Jr. — "He was a good Christian man. But this money created a fantasy world for him. And unfortunately this was something that he lived out in real life. He gave into temptation and that's not an unusual thing to happen, when you have a large sum of money."

 • Dr. Dwayne Wolf, Harris County Medical Examiner, on the suicide of Billie Bob Harrell Jr. — "He had taken off all of his clothes. There was a shotgun laying at his feet."

 • Michael Carroll, British lottery winner — "The lottery does bring more bad than good. People around you try to dig at you. The money is the root of all evil."

 • Michael Carroll on losing his family after winning the lottery — "In some ways I think to myself if I had never won, I might still have my wife and daughter."

 • Kelly Muncaster, Michael Carroll's aunt — "Living life in a goldfish bowl, people are watching your every move and all the time making things up. I mean its destroyed our family completely."

 • Robyn Newton, winner of the Superlotto in California — "I still have a constant fear that it's going to change us, but I think an awful lot of people would slap us down if we started to wander around big headed about it."

 • Wesley Newtown, husband of Robyn Newton — "A lot of people get into drugs and everything but you got to think about the long haul. We want to be healthy. We want to be able to enjoy our lives. Now when I see the fanciest car every driving by I think I could buy that. But I don't want to."

 • Susan Bradley, certified financial planner and sudden money expert, on winning the lottery — "Everyone thinks it's a problem they'd love to have. Most people don't realize the complexity and the challenges. And if you don't respect the complexities, you can run into some pretty big, big problems."

 • Susan Bradley on the best way to claim a winning lottery ticket — "One of the first things a lottery winner should do in a perfect world is not claim the ticket in their name. You can form a blind trust, and you can have the lottery winnings put into the trust."