Grandparents, mystery Melbourne person split $100m Powerball
Rockhampton grandparents and a Melbourne player have had a $50 million Powerball windfall. Photo: AAP
Two Queensland grandparents and a mystery Melbourne winner will split the jackpot after their numbers came up in Thursday’s $100 million Powerball draw.
The couple from Rockhampton, in central Queensland, and the unregistered Victorian ticket-holder will get a cool $50 million each.
The new millionaire grandmother could not believe her luck when the phone call from The Lott came through immediately after Thursday night’s draw.
“You’re joking,” she said.
“I’m in disbelief. I can’t believe it. This doesn’t happen to us.
“I expected you to ask if we have solar panels, not to tell us we’ve just won $50 million.
“We’re multimillionaires. I can’t believe I’m saying that. It’s going to take a while to wrap my head around it.”
The woman said she was in a “total state of shock”.
“I’ve been playing for a long time now – since the game first started. I had always used the same numbers, but this ticket was just a QuickPick.
“We’ve been pretty happy in life, but this is the icing on the cake.”
The couple said they would share the multimillion-dollar prize with family.
“We’ll have lots more time together now too. I don’t think they’re going to believe us when we tell them,” the Queensland grandmother said.
“There’s going to be a few more prezzies under the tree on Christmas day.”
Meanwhile, the hunt is on for the Melbourne winner who may not even realise they hold the lucky ticket, purchased from a Tatts outlet in Darebin, in the city’s inner-north.
The Lott officials are waiting for the Victorian winner to check their ticket and come forward before the prize claim process can start.
The winning numbers were 22, 10, 4, 31, 1, 26 and 9. The Powerball number was 14.
“We’re encouraging all City of Darebin residents and visitors to check their entries, because you may just discover you’ve won an exhilarating prize set to change the course of your future,” The Lott’s Anna Hobdell said.
“We can’t wait to unite this mystery winner with their $50 million prize and have that incredibly special conversation about what their future might hold.”
Hobdell said it was a timely reminder for players to register lottery tickets, so they could be more easily contacted in the event of a win.
-with AAP