A young Auckland couple are $5.3 million richer after purchasing Wednesday's winning Powerball ticket "on a whim".
The pair, who wish to remain anonymous, bought the ticket just before Lotto's live Powerball First Division draw on Wednesday night.
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"I don't know why, but something just popped into my mind telling me to buy a ticket, so I jumped onto MyLotto and bought a dip then forgot all about it," said the man in a statement.
It wasn't until Thursday morning when the man logged onto Lotto's website that he realised they had hit the jackpot.
"I logged into MyLotto and saw $5,333,333 stamped across the top of my ticket and I didn't know what to think," he said.
"I thought it might be the jackpot or something, until I saw all the numbers circled on one line of my ticket."
His partner thought he was joking when he handed her his phone and said "something's happened".
They later rung Lotto to confirm and after finding out it was correct, went out for lunch and called the rest of their family with the good news.
"When I spoke to my Dad, he was so relaxed about it! He just said 'oh yeah?' then continued to tell me about what he had planned for the rest of the day," said the man.
"Mum's reaction was the complete opposite. I told her to sit down, then told her the good news. She was beside herself with excitement, screaming and cheering. Classic Mum and Dad."
The pair is looking forward to helping their families out and buying their first home.
The man laughed that he might treat himself to a new car and boat.
Wednesday's draw was the seventh time Powerball First Division has been struck in 2019. The largest amount won was on January 2, when someone in Taranaki took home $22.3 million.
Newshub.
