A Gympie woman has had her lifelong dream of winning a major lottery prize realised after she scratched a $520,000 top prize on an Instant Scratch-Its ticket.
The $10 Live the Life ticket was purchased at Warana Newsagency, Shop 8, Warana Shopping Village, 239 Nicklin Way, Warana.
The Queensland winner will enjoy the top prize for many years to come as it is an annuity prize paid in instalments of $1,000 a week for 10 years.
Sharing her joy with an official from The Lott this morning, the jubilant woman explained smaller winnings from a ticket she received for her birthday had led to her major windfall.
“I can’t believe it! It’s always been my lifelong dream to win a major lottery prize,” she laughed.
“Initially, I was gifted another Live the Life Instant Scratch-Its ticket for my birthday, which had some winnings, and I decided to use the winnings to purchase another one.
“I was feeling pretty lucky, and I’ve never personally went out of my way to purchase a $10 Instant Scratch-Its ticket.
“I was then at home by myself in the kitchen and decided to scratch the ticket. I couldn’t believe it. I was pretty excited but also scared as I couldn’t comprehend if it was real or not!
“I’m just over the moon!
“It’s been the weirdest sensation going to work knowing that I’ve won a major lottery prize, but I’m going to continue working.”
When asked how she thought she might enjoy her weekly prize instalments, the winner said it would be a welcomed boost for the future.
“This is my one shot at making my retirement easier! I see myself with an investment home for retirement,” she shared.
“I would like to use this week to plan how I’m going to use my prize. I will feel at ease knowing I have a long-term plan.
“It will make things a lot easier.”
Warana Newsagency owner Paul Whitney said he was pleased to hear the top prize was sold at his store.
“My heart is probably racing as much as the winner. It’s sensational news!” he revealed.
“At the end of the month, it will be 12 months since I’ve owned the store. Since I’ve been here, I’ve never sold an Instant Scratch-Its top prize before. This is my first one!
“We’re just so pleased to hear that our little store has helped transform someone’s life. We hope one day we can find out who it is, but regardless, we’re very happy for them.”
In 2020, there were 177 Instant Scratch-Its top prize winners across The Lott’s jurisdictions who collectively took home more than $16 million in top prizes.
During this same time, Instant Scratch-Its players enjoyed more than 32.3 million wins across all prize tiers worth more than $281.17 million. This equates to more than three-quarters of a million dollars won on Instant Scratch-Its every day.