Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Work smarter with a Pro licence Learn More

Video | Agriculture | Confidence | Economy | Energy | Employment | Finance | Media | Property | RBNZ | Science | SOEs | Tax | Technology | Telecoms | Tourism | Transport | Search

 

Lucky Numbers Just The Ticket: Auckland Couple Claim $14.25 Million

An Auckland couple couldn’t believe their eyes when they discovered their lucky numbers had scooped them a massive $14.25 million with Powerball First Division.

The winner, who wishes to remain anonymous, picked up her regular Lotto ticket on the Lotto NZ App on Saturday morning.

“I’ve been playing the same numbers for a few years now – they’re a combination of family birthdays, milestones and special events. I pick up a ticket for most draws, but didn’t actually buy this ticket until Saturday when I saw what the jackpot was… it was a bit of a whim really,” said the winner.

The winner thought nothing more of her decision until after the draw, when she decided to log into the Lotto NZ App and check her ticket.

“We had friends over for dinner and I decided to open up the Lotto NZ App and check my ticket while we chatted. My mind started racing when I saw the numbers all being circled on one line – I wanted to tell my husband, but he was deep in conversation, so I started tapping the table to try and get his attention.”

“I had no idea what she was doing,” laughed her husband. “Then she turned her phone to me and showed me the ticket and I just nodded and said, ‘oh cool, a Bonus Ticket’.”

“That’s when I pointed at the number stamped on the top of the ticket, but he still didn’t click – he thought it was $14,000. Even then, he played it cool as all our friends were around, so I decided to sleep on it and double check again in the morning,” said the winner.

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

Are you getting our free newsletter?

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.

After a sleepless night, the woman logged back into MyLotto on Sunday morning and checked her ticket again.

“I saw all the numbers circled on one line again and it started to feel real – though I’ve lost track of the number of times I’ve gone back and looked at the ticket since then,” laughed the winner.

“When my husband woke up, I sat him down and told him he needed to have a look at our Lotto ticket again,” said the winner.

“I was still stoked to have won $14,000 – so when she told me to double check how many zeros there were, I could hardly believe it. There it was right in front of me – we’d won $14,250,000… and a Bonus Ticket too!” her husband said.

With the prize now safely in the winners’ bank account, the couple are looking forward to enjoying their winnings.

“We’ll pay off the mortgage and help set our kids up – that’s the most important thing for us. We want to make sure the whole family is set up for the future."

“You always dream about winning Powerball, but for it to actually happen… it’s blown us both away,” the winner said.

The winning Powerball ticket was sold on MyLotto for the draw on Saturday 17 April.

© Scoop Media

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
 
 
 
Business Headlines | Sci-Tech Headlines

 
GenPro: General Practices Begin Issuing Clause 14 Notices

GenPro has been copied into a rising number of Clause 14 notices issued since the NZNO lodged its Primary Practice Pay Equity Claim against General Practice employers in December 2023.More

SPADA: Screen Industry Unites For Streaming Platform Regulation & Intellectual Property Protections

In an unprecedented international collaboration, representatives of screen producing organisations from around the world have released a joint statement.More

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Join Our Free Newsletter

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.