29 September 20

Young Sunshine Coast woman’s homeowner dreams come true with $500,000 Instant Scratch-Its win

By Matthew Hart

Updated 29 September 2020 - 12:56 pm,

first published at 29 September 2020 - 12:56 pm

A young Sunshine Coast woman has explained her dream of buying her very own home will soon become a reality after winning a life-changing $500,000 on a $20 Platinum Fortunes ticket.

The top prize winning Instant Scratch-Its ticket was purchased at Golden Beach Sub Newsagency, 6/46 Landsborough Parade, Golden Beach.

Sharing her excitement with an official from The Lott this morning, the overwhelmed winner said the gravity of her prize was still sinking in.

“It still doesn’t seem real!” she laughed.

“It’s crazy.

“I was at work, and I was just about to go on my lunch break, and I thought I’d grab a scratchie. I hadn’t bought one in a long time.

“I was sitting by the beach about to have my lunch when I scratched it.

“I honestly couldn’t believe it. I looked at the ticket for so long, and I thought it just couldn’t be right.

“It was so surreal! It’s was amazing.”

When asked how she planned to enjoy her $500,000 fortune, the Sunshine Coast resident said it would set her up for life.

“I’m going to buy a new car which was very overdue,” she said.

“I am also going to help my parents out and use the rest to put a big deposit down on a house.

“It will be a dream come true to buy my very own home.

“It’s amazing! I still can’t believe it.”

Golden Beach Sub Newsagency owner Kemlyn Cox said she’d never forget her customer’s winning moment.

“When she came into the store to check her ticket she went completely pale and started shaking when I told her she’d won the top prize,” she explained.

“It was such a special moment. I was so very happy for her.

“It’s amazing to see these huge prizes go to our local and regular customers.

“Congratulations to her!”

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.