Kiwi horse racing punter who scooped $10m with free bet in TAB promotion thought it was a 'hoax'

A Kiwi TAB punter has had a life-changing weekend after scooping $10 million for correctly guessing the finishing order of the horses in Saturday's The Everest race at Royal Randwick in Sydney.  

A TAB promotion, The Everest Mega Millions, gave customers the free opportunity to submit their predictions on where all 12 horses would finish in Australia's richest race for the chance to win a $10 million prize.  

Against the odds, a Kiwi correctly guessed the finishing order, leaving them "blown away" and shocked.

The winner stumbled across the competition while betting on the Rugby World Cup and thought it "wouldn't hurt to take a shot".  

And thankfully they did, but the winner couldn't believe their luck at first when told about their success.  

"I'm absolutely blown away," the winner told TAB.   

"I saw the promotion on the TAB site and thought I'd give it a crack. I didn't put too much thought into my picks and just dropped the runners where I thought it could go. I honestly could not believe I'd won it.   

"I actually thought it was a hoax when they first rang me - I called the TAB back, and it took quite a lot of convincing before it sank in! To have pulled it off, winning $10 million in a free to play competition, is truly incredible for my family and I."  

The managing director of Entain New Zealand, who operates the TAB, Cameron Rodger, said they're thrilled for the winner.  

"It was great to see so many Kiwis getting involved in The Everest through our Mega Millions promotion, and to have someone take home the $10 million prize is an amazing result," Rodger said.   

"The Everest is the world's richest race on turf and this customer has managed to take home more than the winner's purse by pulling off one of the most impressive selecting feats we have ever seen.   

Showing just how unlikely the prediction was, Rodger said the race had over 400 million possible finish results.  

"We're thrilled with the customer engagement this innovative competition was able to generate and a huge congratulations to our winner!" Rodger said.   

On the track, it was also a good day for Kiwi horses. New Zealand horse I Wish I Win finished second just behind race favourite Think About It.  

The finishing order of The Everest:   

1. Think About It   
2. I Wish I Win   
3. Private Eye   
4. In Secret   
5. Cylinder   
6. Hawaii Five Oh   
7. Espiona   
8. Buenos Noches   
9. Shinzo   
10. Overpass   
11. Mazu   
12. Alcohol Free