SILVERHILL — Scott Griffin was in his backyard when he got a lucrative surprise visit.

Griffin and his family, consisting of his wife, Jenni, son, David, and mother, Judy, were presented with a check worth $10,000 from the Publishers Clearing House (PCH) Prize Patrol team. Despite his family teasing him for entering into the sweepstakes for years, his entry finally saw success on Tuesday, Jan. 6.

"I didn't think it was going to happen," Griffin said. "I always check the app. I'm always in it all the time and play every day, and I have since, shoot, for 15 years now. My family has always teased me about playing, saying 'You're never gonna win. You're never gonna win.' I said, 'Well, you never know.' You won't win unless you play, and that's what I've always told them, and so I've just kept it up through the teasing, and this paid off."

Beginning in 1989, media company PCH has been running Prize Patrol, a group that travels across America to surprise winners of their sweepstakes with checks ranging in thousands and millions of dollars.

Griffin said with the money, he and his family plan to pay off bills and buy some new clothes and shoes. They may also plan a vacation.

Howie Guja of Prize Patrol spoke highly of the coastal Alabama area, having traveled to the state several times to surprise winners.

In April 2025, PCH filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, with the company saying it is transitioning to a "pure digital advertising" model. Despite this, the Prize Patrol team continues to deliver awards across America. The company's assets were later acquired by ARB Interactive, an online sweepstakes company.