What it’s like to win big and see telephone numbers in your account
Houses, flash European cars, jewellery, holidays and luxury treats — welcome to the world of a multi- milliondollar Lotto winner.
Tonight’s $ 38 million jackpot stands to be the biggest- ever win if it’s landed by one lucky ticket.
As Lotto fever grips the nation, the Weekend Herald spoke to the winners of a $ 13.2m Powerball jackpot. They say their windfall two years ago has been incredible fun — so much so, they still buy tickets.
“We won $ 13.2m in 2014. Seeing the winnings in our bank account was like seeing the winning Lotto numbers line up on my ticket all over again,” the winners said, who requested anonymity.
“We couldn’t sleep, so logged into our online banking at 4am just to see whether it had arrived. And all of a sudden, there was this long line of numbers in our account. We were jumping up and down, screaming and crying. It was unbelievable to see.
“We bought a new family home, which has definitely been our biggest purchase. We’ve also used our winnings to buy nice cars, set up investments and help our families.
“Winning Powerball has enabled us to do so many things that we wouldn’t have been able to otherwise.
“I’m big into my cars and winning has given me the chance to treat myself to a beautiful F- Type Jaguar close with our extended family.
“Winning Powerball has given us the ability to help make other people’s lives a bit easier while treating ourselves to some luxuries. Winning really did give us the freedom of time,” they said.
“Our new house has quite a bit of land, so keeping that looking good keeps me pretty busy. It takes me about two hours on a ride- on mower to do the lawns.
“We’ve also been enjoying some home renovations since winning — we love being able to put our stamp on the house.”
Financial advice is one of the main pieces of support offered to overnight millionaires. And while taking the time to consider how you spend your cash is important, the winners’ advice is to make sure you enjoy your slice of fortune.
“Think about what you want to do carefully before you make any big decisions — don’t get carried away,” they said.
“The most important thing is to take your time, get good advice, set yourself up for the future and, of course, enjoy yourself!”