New Zealand Powerball Jackpot Claimed After 11 Days
A married couple from Auckland, New Zealand, have claimed a Powerball jackpot worth NZ$7.2 million 11 days after they won the seven-figure windfall. After hearing the top prize had been won, the duo joked that it might be them, but didn’t actually check their ticket which they kept in a drawer for safe-keeping.
Winning Ticket Left in Drawer
The winners bought their lucky ticket from a Pak’nSave store in the village of Silverdale on Wednesday 12th September, the day of the draw. They matched all six numbers – 1, 3, 8, 11, 19 and 36 – and the Powerball 37 to land the jackpot, and have decided to stay anonymous following their big win.
The wife said: "The win was all over Facebook, so you really couldn't miss it. When my husband asked if I'd heard that a big Powerball prize had been won, I grabbed the ticket out of my handbag and waved it in front of him and jokingly said, 'Yip, this is the winning ticket'."
However, she then placed the Powerball ticket in a drawer full of other tickets without actually checking the numbers first. They then joked for the next couple of days about what they would do if they were winners, and she revealed: "We talked about it throughout the week here and there what we'd do, who we'd help...that kind of thing. We had a bit of a lucky feeling about our ticket but nothing serious enough to actually check it."
"Totally surreal moment"
Later in the week, she checked the pile of tickets in her drawer at a local store to see if she was a winner. She discovered, to her surprise, that her most recent ticket was a first division-winning ticket. The wife continued: "As I checked them, I had a few small wins here and there - and then I scanned this ticket and saw 'First Division winner' appear on the screen."
She rushed home and showed her husband the winning ticket on her iPad when he returned, describing it as a "totally surreal moment" when they found out they had actually won after previously joking about it. "I kept telling myself that it would just be a small prize - a nice little win. I was doing everything I could to just keep calm and get home. I looked the results up online and checked them against my ticket the winning line jumped out at me and I popped a little star beside it. Not that I really needed to I'll never forget what it looked like."
The winnings have now been deposited into the couple’s bank account, and the duo have decided to take some time to plan what they to do with their winnings. However, they have said they want to make their winnings last, and provide for their children and loved ones.
Hastings Jackpot Winner Urged to Come Forward
Lotto New Zealand are urging all players in the Hastings area of Hawke’s Bay to check their tickets, with a NZ$2.5 million Powerball jackpot still unclaimed. The lucky ticket was purchased on Wednesday 19th September from Countdown Hastings, and players have been advised to sign the back of their tickets and double check them online, using the Lotto New Zealand app or at any authorised ticket retailer throughout the country.
Lottery winners in New Zealand have up to 12 months from the date of a draw to come forward and claim their prize, so get in touch with a family member or friend if you believe they are the lucky owner of this jackpot-winning ticket.
This Wednesday’s jackpot is currently worth an estimated NZ$2.5 million, and you can be in with a chance of winning by picking your numbers online from various locations around the world. Good luck, and let us know how you get on!