A Cairns man has vowed to live the great Australian dream, buy himself a big property and live off the grid after this morning discovering $20 million is about to hit his bank account.
The Far North Queensland mineral worker held the only division one winning entry across Australia in Powerball draw 1277, drawn Thursday 5 November 2020, taking home the jackpot division one prize of $20 million.
This morning an official from The Lott called the unassuming winner to break the life-changing news.
“Oh sh*t!” he screamed with excitement.
“Oh Jesus Christ! Crikey!
“Thank you very much. Oh my god. Are you sure this isn’t a joke?
“Has one of my friends put you up to this?
“Holy shit. Oh my god. This is amazing. Oh my god. Wow.
“I play off and on, every now and again. I can’t believe this.
“I feel like I’m dreaming. Everything feels like a bit of a blur.
“My mind is going a bit wild. Oh wow. Oh my god. I’m dizzy.”
When the overwhelmed winner started to calm down, he began to think about what life looked like with $20 million in his bank account.
“I work in the minerals industry and I will keep working for now but maybe I’ll change jobs down the track and pursue some of my hobbies,” he explained.
“I do get bored easy so I would have to be doing something!
“I’m going to live the great Australian dream and buy myself a big property and live off the grid.
“I’ll be helping my family and friends out as well and making sure they’re more than comfortable.
“As soon as I get off the phone, I’m calling my parents and telling them they’ll be set up for the rest of their lives!
“I’m ending 2020 with $20 million – can you believe it?!”
The winner, who wishes to remain anonymous, purchased his life-changing entry online at thelott.com – Australia’s official lotteries.
The Cairns man is the eleventh Powerball division one winner so far in 2020. Collectively, these eleven Aussies have pocketed more than $420 million in division one prize money.
The winning numbers in Powerball draw 1277 on Thursday 5 November 2020 were 24, 3, 13, 2, 35, 14 and 21. The all-important Powerball number was 12.
Across Australia, there was only one division one winning entry in Powerball draw 1277 – the entry from Queensland.
The Lott’s division one winning tally has now reached 146 so far this financial year, including 36 won by Golden Casket customers.
In 2019, 14 Powerball division one winners across Australia pocketed more than $541.87 million in prize money.
During this time, the biggest individual Powerball prize was $107,575,649.08, which was won by a Sydney healthcare worker on 17 January 2019. Her windfall set a new record for Australia’s biggest individual lottery winner. In 2019, Powerball offered a $150 million jackpot, the largest ever offered by an Australian lottery game, which was shared by three division one winners.
Of the 14 Powerball division one winning entries in 2019, five landed in New South Wales, four in Queensland, three in Victoria and two in South Australia.