Australia’s newest multi-millionaires have been found, with a Townsville couple today discovering they held the Powerball entry that won more than $8.9 million on Thursday night.
The retired Garbutt couple held the only division one winning entry across Australia in Powerball draw 1251, drawn Thursday 7 May 2020, scoring the division one prize of $8,948,153.83.
The ticket was unregistered, so officials had no way of contacting the winner. Instead, they had to wait for the ticketholder to check their ticket and come forward to claim their prize.
Speaking to an official from the Lott shortly after discovering their win today, the winning woman couldn’t comprehend her and her husband’s sudden good fortune.
“Something this good has never happened to us!” she cried.
“I’ve never even won a hanky before. Not one thing! We’ve never won anything.
“We’ve worked hard all our lives and then to just get something this big overnight is unbelievable. It hasn’t sunk in.
“We haven’t had any luck in the past, but maybe that’s all changed now! It’s such a blessing.”
The North Queenslander explained she and her husband didn’t think they had pocketed the Powerball division one prize when they first checked their ticket.
“We didn’t know until this morning!” she laughed.
“We checked our ticket last night but didn’t think we had all the numbers.
“When the numbers came up on the telly, my husband went to write them down. But by the time he got the biro, he only caught a few and I think he wrote them down wrong.
“We got hold of the right numbers this morning and checked our ticket again. That’s when we saw we had all the numbers.
“We just looked at each other and I started crying.”
The Townsville mum already knows how she and her husband will use some of their multi-million-dollar prize.
“We can start helping some family members. It will be awesome,” she said.
“It will make such a big difference to our family.
“We also want to make a donation to some charities that matter to us.
“I’d also love a nice diamond ring – something that will be a family heirloom. It’s something I’ve wanted for a long time. Not sure what my husband wants yet. He’s still thinking about it!”
The couple, who wish to remain anonymous, purchased their winning entry was purchased at newsXpress Garbutt Central, Shop 1 Garbutt Central, 221 Ingham Road, Garbutt.
newsXpress Garbutt Central owners Ken and Lyn Ivers said they were delighted the outlet’s latest division winners had been found.
“It’s been busy the past two days with lots of people coming in to check their tickets and hoping it’s them,” Ken said.
“It’s just wonderful news to have right now. We wish them all the very best with their prize.
“We’ve sold three division one prizes in six years. That’s a good hit rate.
"We’re a lucky store and I hope it continues for our customers.”
The winning numbers in Powerball draw 1251 on Thursday 7 May 2020 were 12, 9, 16, 23, 26, 35 and 29. The all-important Powerball number was 10.
Across Australia, there was only one division one winning entry in Powerball draw 1251 – the entry from Queensland.
The Lott’s division one winning tally has now reached 107 so far this year, including 33 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.
