Oz Lotto: Farmers who thought they'd 'never retire' bag $10 million
The NSW couple scored the entire jackpot from Tuesday night's draw.
Few things are certain in life, but working to get paid is one. And that couldn't be more true for a hardworking Aussie couple who thought they'd "never retire" — until they won the lottery jackpot.
Their outlook on life changed overnight when the couple from Orange in NSW learned they were Australia's newest multi-millionaires. The elderly woman held the only division one winning entry in Tuesday night's Oz Lotto draw and she earned herself and her husband a hefty $10 million prize.
"Are you serious? Are you actually serious? This isn’t a scam, is it? Oh my god!" she told The Lott officials when they phoned her on Wednesday morning. "What a dream come true! I can’t stop crying, I’m sorry!"
"We’re farmers and my husband is at retirement age and we thought we could never retire," the chuffed winner said of her prize. "I can’t wait to get off the phone and visit my husband who is working away in our shed. Oh my god! You don’t know how much this means to us."
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The elated lottery winner said they'd "only ever won $12 on a ticket" before and "never expected to win $10 million". "We have many bills to pay off and this will make things so much easier for our family, especially our children. Thank you so much," she said.
Their winning 12-game QuickPick was purchased online at thelott.com. The winning numbers in Oz Lotto draw 1561 on Tuesday 16 January 2024 were 17, 37, 4, 29, 9, 24 and 47, while the supplementary numbers were 20, 27 and 14.
More chances to win big
Last month, the Oz Lotto jackpot reached new heights and saw three lucky Aussies claim a share of $90 million. The Boxing Day draw skyrocketed to $90 million after $70 million went unclaimed the week earlier. It was the first time the Oz Lotto jackpot has reached such a figure in more than 14 years.
Meanwhile, Thursday's Powerball draw has hit a jackpot of $100 million — the equal fifth-biggest in Australian history.
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