A Dunedin couple say they are still “in fairyland” after winning $4.3 million in Saturday’s Lotto draw.
The woman, who wished to remain anonymous, watched the live draw with her husband after being gifted a ticket by a family member.
The couple wrote the winning numbers at the top of the ticket and checked to see how they fared.
“She said, ‘I think we’ve got three numbers, have a look’,” said the man. “I said to her, ‘we haven’t got three numbers, we’ve got six — we’ve won Lotto, and we’ve got Powerball too’.”
The win was made up of $4m from Powerball First Division and $333,333 from Lotto First Division.
They said they had no sleep that night as they tried to make sense of their new financial position.
“It’s just mind-boggling,” the woman said.
The bulk of the money would be put into a savings account while they decided what do with it, but a portion would be used straight away to treat their children and grandchildren, she added.
“We’re going to look at replacing our car. We probably won’t buy a new one, but it will be an upgrade,” the woman said.
The couple claimed the prize yesterday at the store where the ticket had been purchased – Whitcoulls George Street in Dunedin.
Saturday night’s other big prize also went to a player in the south of the country.
The special $1 million prize that was part of Lotto NZ’s “biggest Christmas ever” promotion was won by a player who purchased his ticket at Plaza Supervalue in Invercargill.
Another 100 prizes of $50,000 were won by players from across New Zealand as part of the promotion.
