How To Protect Your Financial Windfall

How To Protect Your Financial Windfall

Mike Crisolago Updated Sep 6, 2025 Money Wise

The (PCH) Publisher’s Clearing House saga is a cautionary tale for anyone who comes into a large sum of money — whether it’s a sweepstakes giveaway, a lottery win or an inheritance. Without a plan, that money can dry up faster than you think.

Oregon man won ‘$5K a week forever’ in 2012, spent cash like he was set for life — but Publishers Clearing House went bankrupt. Now he might lose home

An old sweepstakes TV commercial once promised, “Only Publishers Clearing House can make you so rich, so fast!”

But, as some unlucky winners discovered this year, the opposite is also true: Publishers Clearing House (PCH) can make your fortune disappear just as quickly.

That’s what happened to John Wyllie, a 61-year-old Oregon man who won $5,000 a week for life from the PCH Prize Patrol in 2012.

According to NBC affiliate KGW8 [1], Wyllie received an annual check for $260,000 every January. The money let him retire and buy a house on six acres in scenic Bellingham, Washington. But this year, the checks suddenly stopped. A few months later, Wyllie learned why: PCH had filed for bankruptcy without warning him or other winners.

Wyllie told KGW8 the turn of events “feels like a nightmare,” made worse by the fact that he hasn’t worked in more than a decade and can’t find a job now. With bills piling up, he’s sold off big-ticket items like a jet ski and trailer, but still expects to lose his home.

For anyone who’s ever daydreamed about a life-changing win, Wyllie’s story is a harsh reminder that easy money isn’t always forever. It’s a reality check that could strike anyone who finds themselves scrambling to offset the loss.

From bankable to bankruptcy

KGW8 reported that Wyllie is one of at least 10 winners still owed money they’ll likely never receive.

That’s because ARB Interactive, which paid $7.1 million to buy PCH, announced it would only honor prizes won after it took over in July. For past winners still waiting on payments, The Wall Street Journal [2] noted they’ll “have to seek payment from the bankruptcy estate.”

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