99% of big Lotto winners play on

They say lightning doesn't strike in the same place twice - but it seems winning Lotto does. Photo / Christine Cornege

They say lightning doesn't strike in the same place twice - but it seems winning Lotto does.

Five big winners in as many years have had Lady Luck on their side twice and have taken home two of Lotto's major prizes.

But those five big-prize winners were not the only ones who hoped all their good fortune hadn't run out - a recent survey of 104 First Division winners revealed that 99 per cent still regularly bought tickets for Lotto and other NZ Lotteries' games.

NZ Lotteries' communications manager, Karen Jones, said the First Division winners who won again included winning the top prize in Lotto again, or the top prize in one of the other games such as Big Wednesday or Instant Kiwi.

"Which just goes to show that despite their amazing winning experience, they believe that they can strike it big again," said Mrs Jones.

"And judging by the number of repeat winners we've had - anything is possible."

A Dunedin woman who won $10,845,530 in 2010 after earlier winning a few hundred thousand in Lotto First Division still played Lotto and Big Wednesday every week. Last September she said she believed in luck "but I can still not understand how I could have won Lotto twice".

No doubt there'll be many crossed fingers, lucky rabbits' feet rubbed and four-leaf clovers clasped tomorrow night as the numbers are drawn for the $25 million Powerball jackpot.

The survey of First Division winners revealed that 60 per cent of Lotto's big winners shared their good fortune with their family and 44 per cent donated some of their winnings to charity.

In addition, more than $3 billion from the sale of lottery tickets has been transferred to the Lottery Grants Board since it was established in 1987.