A Hastings man has revealed he was so shocked from scratching $25,000 on a $2 Christmas Wishes Instant Scratch-Its ticket he felt like he’d been hit by a double-decker bus.
The winning entry was purchased at Lucky Lotto & News Hastings, Shop 2, Aldi Centre, 9 Queen Street, Hastings.
Sharing his joy with an official from The Lott, the Mornington Peninsula resident recounted the moment he discovered he’d scored a top prize.
“It’s amazing! It’s the best time of year for a big win!” he exclaimed.
“I’m absolutely stoked. It’s out of this world. Absolutely fantastic!
“Each week, I buy my wife a TattsLotto ticket and then ask the girl behind the counter to round up the total to $10 using scratchies.
“I took them home and scratched them, and that was it!
“I knew I had won something, but I had no idea that it was a top prize winning ticket.
“It wasn’t until I went to the shop to check it that I realised I had won that much.
“Even then, I don’t think I believed it until I claimed it. I don’t think it will really sink in until I see it in my bank account.
“It’s surreal. It’s an amazing feeling! I’ve never won anything!
“I was so shocked it felt like I’d been hit by a double-decker bus!”
When asked how he planned to enjoy his instant windfall, the loving grandfather confessed there would be a few more presents for his grandkids under the Christmas tree this year.
“We’re out shopping right now and all of a sudden the grandkids are getting bigger and better presents,” he laughed.
“My wife and I have also been planning a trip to New Zealand when we can travel again.
“We’d been tossing up between campervanning or just hiring a car and staying at small motels or B&Bs.
“But now we’ll not have to worry about that at all! We can stay in nicer places or stay a bit longer.
“It will make so much of a difference as there will be no limitations. We’ll still be sensible with it, but we’ll make sure it’s an amazing holiday!”
Lucky Lotto & News Hastings owner Barry McKay said he was thrilled to have sold his outlet’s first Instant Scratch-Its top prize winning ticket.
“It’s pretty exciting! We’ve sold a few division two winning entries, but this is our biggest Instant Scratch-Its prize yet!” he exclaimed.
“Our community has been a great support so we will be excited to tell them we’ve sold a top prize winning ticket and one of our customers is having a great Christmas.
“We hope we can make someone else’s Christmas or New Year great by selling another one soon!
“Congratulations to our winner! We are so happy it has gone to a regular and a local!”
Between 1 July 2019 and 30 June 2020, there were 151 Instant Scratch-Its top prize winners across The Lott’s jurisdictions who collectively took home more than $11.8 million in top prizes.
During this same time, Instant Scratch-Its players enjoyed more than 29.1 million wins across all prize tiers worth more than $235.25 million. This equates to more than half a million dollars won on Instant Scratch-Its every day.