Army vet wins largest 'The Price Is Right' prize in show history

A Virginia woman took home a whopping $240,000 in cash and prizes from one game on "The Price Is Right" this week, shattering a record for the most ever won in a single pricing game. 

According to CBS, Vanesa McCaskell, a retired Army veteran, won $227,500 in cash plus a mother‑daughter trip to Morocco while playing "The Lion’s Share" during the May 8 broadcast. The $241,150 value of her prizes breaks the previous $210,000 record set in 2016. 

How she kept the secret

McCaskell’s big win aired Friday for the show’s Mother’s Day episode, but it was taped in December, according to USA Today. That meant she had to keep it all a secret for months. 

What they're saying:

"It was torture," she told USA Today. "I was practicing my poker face so I didn’t crack when people asked me what happened. They’d say, ‘Did you win?’ and I’d say, ‘No.’ It was really, really tough to hold that."

How she’ll spend it

What's next:

McCaskell says she’s planning to spend the money on "some wise investments" and something nice for her mother. 

"What you do with that amount is critical," McCaskell said.

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"I can't have written this, imagined this any better," she said.

What is ‘The Lion’s Share’? 

The backstory:

"The Lion's Share" game, the first branded prize game on "The Price Is Right," launched as part of a partnership between BetMGM and Fremantle. It’s the first new game since 2021, according to a news release from BetMGM and Fremantle. 

For every item that players choose the correct price, they get a ball, with a maximum of five balls. Then, they enter a wind tunnel to snatch up the number of balls they won by price-matching. They can win up to $500,000 in cash, cars, trips and other prizes. They can also strike out with the "Lose It All" ball.