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Survivor: Ghost Island: Philly Native Wendell Holland Winner Of Season 36

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A local contestant is the final "Survivor"! Wendell Holland just won $1 million by outlasting everyone on "Survivor: Ghost Island."

Holland, 33,  lives in Philadelphia and grew up in Ardmore.

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He's a furniture designer, which was a skill that came in handy while he was stranded on Ghost Island.

Holland formed an alliance with 29-year-old Laurel Johnson, originally of Cherry Hill, New Jersey, to make it to the final show.

Laurel Johnson
(credit: CBS3)

This year's win was truly history-making. It was a tie until Laurel cast the tie-breaking vote in Wendell's favor.

CBS3 caught up with Wendell and Laurel in Los Angeles after the historic win.

"I was in shock. There's never been a tie in the history of Survivor and I was kinda stunned. He came out and said he wanted to read the votes and that's never happened before. Usually, he reads them back when he's in LA," Wendell said.

"It was a no-brainer. It was a tough decision, Dom and Wendell both played great, they both deserved to win. But I think in the end Wendell really pulled it out. Wendell is like a brother to me in this game," Laurel said of the tie-breaking vote.

When asked what he was going to do with the $1 million -- he said some cheesesteaks might be in order.

"I owe Laurel some cheesesteaks. We look out for each other. We were a great duo," Wendell said.

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