A $3.6 million lottery winner waited nearly a year to claim his prize, keeping it a secret from everyone but his mother.

Peter Dushop, 24, told reporters he put the winning ticket in a safety deposit box upon realizing he won the prize because he wanted time to think about how the money could change his life and about what would be the best way to handle the large sum of money.

Since August 2007 he's taken the time he needed, even keeping the secret from his girlfriend who only learned of his winnings when she saw a news broadcast about it when he finally cashed in the 6/49 ticket on Monday.

Dushop told 24hours.cn that he will invest a large portion of the money, but will use some of his newly acquired cash to travel. He plans to continue working as a real estate agent in his hometown.