A Craigieburn dad has attributed his phenomenal $4 million Powerball win to the four-leaf clover he found nestled in his avocado plant, which he placed on top of his ticket.
The Melburnian held one of the two division one winning entries in Powerball draw 1435, drawn Thursday 9 November 2023 and nabbed a total prize of $4,148,377.65.
The winning entry was unregistered which means officials from The Lott were unable to reach out to the ticketholder and had to wait for the mystery winner to check their ticket and come forward.
The newly minted multi-millionaire relayed how the winning discovery came about and described the unforgettable moment as ‘a dream come true’.
“Hallelujah! This is life-changing,” he exclaimed.
“This is a blessing. Thank you, George, George Tattersalls!
“I feel really good now, but when I first discovered the win, it was a whole different story. I was ready to go to bed on Thursday night, but then I thought I would check my Powerball ticket beforehand.
“I couldn’t sleep, couldn’t walk, couldn’t talk. It felt as if I was in a dream. I had to give myself a few days to calm down and catch up on sleep before I could come forward.
“I think it’s karma, but good karma. My children and I played a joke on my wife a couple of years ago that we had won the lottery, and she nearly had a heart attack. We all felt so guilty!
“I remember feeling her heart and it was beating so fast, and now I know exactly what she was going through. I almost went blind and I couldn’t see, and my heart was beating so fast. I was in la-la land!
“My wife has thankfully believed this win and we’ve already gone and celebrated over some fancy dinners. We usually just treat ourselves to a Domino’s pizza!
“I’ve always lived by the moto, ‘do good and good will come to you’. I used to buy $5 pies and hand them out to the less fortunate. It’s truly a blessing.
“I’ve never fathomed having this type of money, ever.”
The spontaneous player shared the winning ticket was purchased at the last minute with loose change that was rattling around in his pocket.
“I had a smaller win left over from a Monday & Wednesday Lotto ticket and I decided to put together my loose change and buy my very first Powerball ticket,” he shared.
“I noticed my avocado plant had sprouted some clover leaves when I came home, and I decided to get rid of them.
“I bent over to have a look and I found a four-leaf clover, and I’ve only ever found three in my entire life. This was the biggest four-leaf clover I had ever found!
“I decided to put the four-leaf clover on my Powerball ticket and let it do its thing.
“Some might not believe me, but I really think it was because of the four-leaf clover, and it was truly meant to be.”
With $4 million about to boost his bank account, the doting dad knew exactly what he would do with the prize.
“This will make our life so much easier. I’ll be able to help my children out with their mortgages and purchase our very own home,” he revealed.
“I’ll also purchase a brand-new car and enjoy the rest of our lives.
“I can’t thank everyone at The Lott enough.”
The division one winning entry was purchased at Lilydale Village Lotto & News, Shop 5, Lilydale Village, 343-347 Main Street, Lilydale.
Lilydale Village Lotto & News owner Rakesh Aggarwal said he was thrilled to hear his outlet had a sold a division one winning entry within five months of taking over the business.
“There aren’t enough words for us to express the excitement we’re feeling after helping change someone’s life in the recent $8 million Powerball draw,” he shared.
“I only entered the lottery business five months ago and my outlet has already sold two division one winning entries – one in Set for Life, and now this division one winning entry in Powerball.
“We’ve started to decorate our store and we’re also sharing the winning news with all our customers. The community has been overjoyed to hear we’ve sold a multi-million-dollar entry.
“We’d like to send a hearty congratulations to the winning man and his family and we hope this win helps them make their dreams a reality.”
The winning numbers in Powerball draw 1434 on Thursday 9 November 2023 were 35, 15, 3, 23, 34, 29 and 30. The all-important Powerball number was 2.
Across Australia, there were two division one winning entries in Powerball draw 1434 – one each in Victoria and Western Australia.
The Lott’s division one winning tally has now reached 360 so far in 2023, including 120 won by Tatts customers.