He burned through all of it.
"I was always carefree," Sharp said. "A fool and his money soon shall part." If he had the chance to do it over, "I wouldn't have been so easy to rush into things. I would have paid more attention to my finances."
He has advice for the newest generation of lottery winners: "Take a vacation, go away and clear your head," he said. "Get a good financial planner. Get a good lawyer."
"Make sure you pay tithes to your church," he added.
Not that he's complaining about his losses. He said finding God has filled the gap. He preaches at a church near his home and visits prisons, where inmates usually ask about his partly charmed life.
"My main thing is to give them the word of God," Sharp said. "It's the only thing that will last."
[from PHYLLIS FURMAN, DAILY NEWS BUSINESS WRITER, Monday, October 05, 2009]