A brief history of Lotteries throughout the ages. Video / NZ Herald
A Matamata woman had a sleepless night on Saturday thinking about the winning Lotto ticket tucked under her pillow.
The mum, who wishes to remain anonymous, struck big, winning $8m from Powerball and a further $250,000 from Lotto First Division.
She was at home when she decided to check her ticket after the live Lotto draw.
"I was checking the numbers off as I usually do, when I realised I had quite a few numbers on one line, she said.
"All of a sudden, I had all six. I was so worried I had made a mistake that I was almost too nervous to check the Powerball number – but I did, and there it was. I started shaking uncontrollably and raced to get my husband."
The couple then spent time checking and rechecking the numbers as they waited for the official results to become available.
"After checking the ticket a dozen or so times, I turned to my husband and said 'it's right, isn't it?' He tentatively said 'I think so …' But no matter how many times we checked the ticket, neither of us could believe it."
It wasn't until the results came up on MyLotto and they said that the winning ticket had been sold in Matamata that it really sunk in.
That evening she put the ticket safely in her handbag and slept with the whole thing under her pillow.
"... Unsurprisingly, I didn't have a very peaceful sleep that night – I kept checking the ticket all night long."
The couple claimed the prize on Sunday and broke the good news to their son.
"Our son cried when we told him that we'd won Powerball – he just couldn't believe it. Neither can we, to be honest, I don't think it will really sink in for a while yet."
The woman is still working out what she will do with her "life-changing" win.
"Our minds are just buzzing at the moment – we're still trying to work out exactly what we will do. The one thing we know for sure is that we'll help out the family with the winnings and make sure that we are set up for the future.
The winning ticket was sold at Paper Plus Matamata and is the sixth big Powerball win for players this year.
Matamata Paper Plus owners Graeme and Kate Guilford told the Herald at the weekend that they were very excited for the winner and hoped it was someone deserving.
The Matamata woman slept with her winning Lotto ticket under her pillow. Photo / File
"It is a long time since we've had a big winner," she said.
Matamata-Piako mayor Ash Tanner said it was exciting times for the district, which was on a winning streak. A $4.5m Lotto ticket was sold in neighbouring town Te Aroha in January.
