"You know, I would do it the same way: Wait until the last minute once a plan is in place on how to use the money and how to deal with all the people who want a piece of it," he said. 

 FILE - In this Jan. 13, 2016 file photo, customers wait to buy lottery tickets at the Blue Bird liguor store in Hawthorne, Calif. With hours to go and $63 million on the line, the mystery remains: Where’s... (Associated Press) 
 
 FILE - In this Jan. 13, 2016 file photo, customers wait to buy lottery tickets at the Blue Bird liguor store in Hawthorne, Calif. With hours to go and $63 million on the line, the mystery remains: Where’s the winning California Lottery ticket - the one sold last Aug. 8, that is - and why hasn’t somebody... (Associated Press) 
 
 LOS ANGELES (AP) — With hours to go and $63 million on the line, the mystery remains: Where's the winning California Lottery ticket and why hasn't somebody cashed it? 
 
 Lottery spokesman Alex Traverso said Wednesday that even he wants to know why the SuperLotto Plus winner let six months pass without claiming the prize. 
 
 Whatever the reason, it won't be a good enough excuse if the 5 p.m. Thursday deadline passes and nobody produces the ticket at a lottery office. "Unfortunately, the rules are the rules," Traverso said. 
 
 The lottery has repeatedly issued statements urging the winner to come forward before the deadline. "We hope they'll turn their house upside down" to find the ticket, Traverso said Wednesday at the Van Nuys office. 
 
 Traverso said he had watched people claim "a thousand bucks here, a thousand bucks there ... but nothing for the big one." 
 
 "From my perspective, I'm here and it would be pretty much the best thing for me if the winner popped in the door and we'll have a little celebration," Traverso said. 
 
 The ticket was sold on Aug. 8 at a 7-Eleven store on Lassen Street in the Chatsworth neighborhood. The winning numbers are: 46-1-33-30-16 and the Mega number: 24. 
 
 The winner can accept the $63 million in payments spread out over 30 years or accept a much smaller lump sum of $39.9 million (before federal taxes). 
 
 Meanwhile, the legal squabbling has begun before a dime has been awarded. 
 
 A lawsuit filed Wednesday in Los Angeles says the holder of the winning ticket was cheated by the California Lottery. Brandy Milliner says he already turned in the ticket and was told to expect his money, but lottery officials told him it was too damaged to be processed. He wants a judge to declare him the winner. 
 
 Traverso said the lottery is looking into the alleged claim. He also says those claiming to be jackpot winners routinely face an investigation to determine the credibility of the claim. 
 
 "Especially when you're talking about millions and millions of dollars, those aren't just processed through with a rubber stamp," Traverso said. 
 
 Currently the largest unclaimed California Lottery prize in history was $28.5 million. The winning ticket was sold in 2003 in San Lorenzo in Alameda County. 
 
 It's harder to determine the largest unclaimed prize for a lottery game in U.S. history. But one contender must certainly be a $77 million Powerball jackpot won in Georgia in 2011. 
 
 In California, between $20 million and $30 million in prizes from various state-only lottery games go unclaimed every year, Traverso said. Last year, it was about $27.1 million. 
 
 "That's all prizes from somebody winning two bucks to, potentially, a jackpot like we're talking about right now," he said. 
 
 That seems like a huge figure, but Traverso noted that the lottery paid out $3.9 billion in prizes last year on sales of $5.5 billion. 
 
 Unclaimed winnings automatically go to the state's schools. 

 As the old adage goes, money isn't everything. And for some people it could be the worst thing. While winning the lottery may seem like a dream come true, not everyone who hits the jackpot goes on to live happily ever after. It's not uncommon to hear about a lottery winner who dies the next day or ends up broke only a few years later. 
 
 The big winner who suddenly has lots of money also has all types of unforeseen pressures...and, of course, newfound means that can get them into trouble. Many crack under the pressure, end up dealing with jealous family or loved ones, and (since money is no object) quite a few have turned to drugs. Unfortunately, some lottery winners are even murdered or killed during a robbery. Even the rich experience tragedy, and a few have died the next day after winning the jackpot. 
 
 It seems there has been a curse on lottery big winners. Some winners have encountered strange deaths, lived tragedies, ended up as murder victims, committed suicide, or met an otherwise untimely death. Here's a list of 11 lottery winners who died tragically because of their winnings.
– A California Lottery winner has only hours left to claim $63 million—the deadline is 5pm local time. "The rules are the rules," a lottery spokesman tells the AP, noting that six months will have passed without anyone claiming the prize. He says he's curious to know what became of the winning ticket—46-1-33-30-16 and Mega number 24—sold at a 7-Eleven in Los Angeles on Aug. 8, though one man claims that lottery officials already know. Brandy Milliner filed a lawsuit on Wednesday claiming he turned in the winning ticket and received a congratulatory letter, but was then told his ticket was too damaged to be processed. He alleges officials have since "destroyed" his ticket, per the Los Angeles Times. "The last-minute timing of this is suspicious," lottery spokesman Russ Lopez says of the lawsuit. "I am not saying it's not real." He says lottery officials are reviewing the allegations and were "taken aback" by the lawsuit. It's possible the man did receive a congratulatory letter, he adds, noting that anyone claiming a prize gets one automatically. If the money isn't claimed, it goes into the state education fund. (Click to read about 11 lottery winners who died tragically.)