One of two South Island multimillion-dollar Lotto prizes from the weekend has been picked up, in Christchurch, but the Dunedin one has yet to be claimed.
A Christchurch man who won $5.5 million with a ticket bought at New World St Martins said he had no idea Powerball had been struck until he checked his ticket the next morning.
He and the owner of a ticket bought at New World Gardens in Dunedin both won that sum with Powerball First Division.
The Dunedin prize remains unclaimed and Lotto NZ is encouraging anyone who bought their ticket from the supermarket to write their name on the back of their ticket and check it as soon as possible in-store or on MyLotto.
The Christchurch man, who wishes to remain anonymous, said he was a regular Lotto player.
“I went to the New World to grab myself a coffee and thought I’d check my ticket while I was there.
“I held it under the ticket checker and ‘Division One Winner’ popped up on the screen,” he said.
“I had a bit of a mild panic at that point and lots of questions popped into my mind – the main one being ‘is this the big prize?’”
The man whispered to the Lotto operator that he thought he’d won Division One and asked them to check his ticket.
“They confirmed I’d won $5.5 million, and my legs felt like jelly,” he laughed.
After filling out the paperwork, the man called his family and a close friend to share the news.
“They were ecstatic for me – probably more excited than I was!”
He said he hasn’t had time to celebrate the win properly yet, but did go out for lunch with a few friends - his shout - then spent the rest of the day dreaming about what to do with his win.
“I couldn’t sleep last night and had lots running through my mind – you start imagining the holiday home, the overseas trips etc.
“I am going to wait a while before I make any decisions though. I want to make sure this money works for mine and my family’s future.”
Players can phone Lotto NZ on 0800 695 6886 if they want to enquire about the best way to claim a prize.
