A Nelson man “couldn’t stop shaking” after he discovered his Instant Kiwi ticket had made him an instant millionaire. 

The man, who wishes to remain anonymous, has bought Instant Kiwi tickets from time to time over the years, and on Saturday picked up a Scratch a Million Instant Kiwi game.

“I hopped into my car and began to play it right there in the car park. When I was scratching it, I noticed that the very first number I scratched away had won me a prize. I didn’t even finish scratching the rest of the game!” laughed the man.

“When I saw I had won the top prize, I started shaking all over. I checked the instructions on the back about four times, and even snapped a photo of the game and sent it to my daughter. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing!”

The man returned to the Lotto store he had just purchased the Instant Kiwi ticket from and claimed his prize.

“The Lotto lady was fantastic and knew exactly what to do. She helped me fill in the prize claim form without delay. It was surreal to be honest!”

“When I returned to my car, my daughter called me. She was ecstatic and said that she had counted the zeros in the picture several times before truly believing I’d won $1 million!” laughed the man.

With the prize now safely in his bank account, the man says he wants to keep things “as normal as possible” but is looking forward to setting himself up for the future.

The winning $15 Scratch a Million ticket was sold at Black Cat Store in Nelson.

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