SO MUCH WINNING
€250,000 Lotto winner’s identity is being kept a secret – but the lucky 23-year-old has revealed his mother won the SAME PRIZE ten years ago!
THE IDENTITY of a 23-year-old Wexford man who won a cool €250,000 on Lotto Plus 2 – ten years after his mother landed the very same prize – remains a secret.
The delighted player collected his winning cheque on Friday at National Lottery HQ and revealed there was a sense of déjà vu as he accompanied his mother to the Winner’s Room when she collected her prize a decade ago.
He bought his winning ticket for Wednesday’s Lotto draw at Wallace’s Costcutter in Wellingtonbridge.
‘We are absolutely stunned. First to win one of the big National Lottery draw prizes. But to win the exact one that my Mam won before is an incredible coincidence. This is a sign that lightning does strike twice!’ the lucky Lotto player said.
When his mother won Lotto Plus 2 she claimed a cheque for €200,000, but the prize has since increased to €250,000.
The County Wexford man got engaged recently and can now start planning his future on a firm financial footing.
‘I am in a different position to my Mam as when she won she had her house, my dad had a good job and her family were fairly established. I am engaged and starting out on life and this will be a huge help in helping me and my fiancée get set up.’
He said the couple don’t have a wedding date set, but I think this will hurry things along!’ he laughed, with his fiancée by his side. ‘But we won’t do anything in a hurry. I am going to get some good financial advice. We don’t have a house so we may put some money towards a deposit and I might invest some.
‘Meanwhile, we are leaving here to do a bit of shopping!’
The lucky man, who was given the day off work to travel to Dublin to collect his winnings, plays Lotto occasionally. He said: ‘I always check my tickets afterwards on the National Lottery App. I couldn’t believe it when I got a message to say contact the National Lottery for some good news. I then crossed checked the numbers on the website. My fiancée’s mother trebled-checked the ticket for me as I still didn’t think it could be true.’
The latest Wexford win comes in the same month that Bunclody engineer Philip Kavanagh won €500,000 on a EuroMillions Plus draw, while Enniscorthy man and professional soccer player for Preston North End Kevin O’Connor, won €1 million on the National Lottery Christmas Millionaire Raffle.
Speaking on selling the winning ticket, store manager of Wallace’s Costcutter Ger Cruise said: ‘We’re absolutely thrilled. There is no way any of us here know who the winner is, such is the footfall in the store, but I hope that it’s a person from Wellingtonbridge!”
The lucky numbers for the Lotto Plus 2 draw were 7, 11, 20, 24, 40, 43 and the bonus was 46.