Australian lottery: Sydney man wins wins record $1.7m in US online lottery

A struggling Sydney restaurant owner on the brink of closing his business due to Covid-19 has won a record $1.7m in The Lottery Office’s USA Power Lotto.

The Lottery Office allows Australians to buy tickets in global lotteries, including the US, because it purchases a matching ticket for customers in overseas draws.

The 50-year-old man was also one number short of claiming the division one prize of $170m.

However, the win was boosted by the man accidentally selecting a multiplier game for an extra $3.45, which doubled his division 2 base prize of $828,000.

His total prize – $1.656m – is Australia’s largest payout from an online-only lottery provider.

The man was notified of the win through a push notification on the Lottery Office app, which he had only downloaded and started to use in December.

The Lottery Office chief executive Jaclyn Wood said the man, from Oatlands in Sydney’s northwest, was in tears.

“The player said the recent lockdowns had been a massive blow to his hospitality businesses and he had suffered numerous sleepless nights figuring out how he could continue to support his family and staff,” Ms Wood said.

“He emailed us straight after the app notified him of the win. He knew he had won a big prize, but he wasn’t ready to believe it. When I called him this morning, he was in tears from the moment I confirmed how much he had won.”

The man said Covid-19 had crippled his business and he was about to close down.

“I have been in business for almost 30 years, but due to the devastating impact of Covid-19, I was about to go under,” the division 2 winner said.

“I feel like this win is an absolute miracle that has saved my life, and I won’t let this opportunity go to waste. I will put this money towards paying off debts and saving my business.”

Ms Wood said the $183m division one prize in the US lottery had rolled over into this week given no one had won it.

“Our lotteries provide Aussies with some of the world’s largest jackpots, and with no one taking home the division 1 prize, USA Power Lotto has jackpotted once again to a massive $183m for this Thursday’s draw,” she said.

“If the customer wins, we pay them the exact amount of the winnings we collect from the overseas lottery ticket.”

The Lottery Office donates a percentage of ticket sales to Australian charities. Global Players Network is the parent company of The Lottery Office.

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