Two pensioners from Port Kennedy who used their last $11 in change to purchase a Monday Lotto ticket are Western Australia’s newest millionaires.
The self-described battlers are both in their 60s and purchased the ticket on a whim after the wife dreamt she’d won Lotto.
“When you’re living pension to pension it isn’t easy,” the wife said.
“I was surprised my hubby let me use our last bit of change to buy the ticket but it was a Double Win Day,” she added.
The couple are now set to pocket $1 million.
The wife said she first realised she’d taken out the nation’s only Division 1 win for Monday night after checking the numbers as they were drawn.
“I didn’t know what to do,” she said.
“I wanted to tell my husband straight away but I was scared the shock of it would give him a heart attack,” she added.
The wife said she originally told her husband they’d won a couple thousand dollars, later returning to the lounge room to tell him they were millionaires.
“I told her not to be stupid,” the husband said.
“When I rechecked the numbers I immediately realised we could afford our next mortgage payment,” he added.
The couple purchased their ticket from St Clair Pharmacy & News marking the second Division 1 winning ticket sold in the City of Rockingham in less than 48 hours after Rockingham Central Lottery Centre sold a $1.3 million Saturday Lotto Superdraw ticket.
Owner of St Clair Pharmacy & News, George Salib, said he was delighted to learn the couple were locals and so deserving of the windfall.
“They were trying to sell their house as they could no longer afford the mortgage repayments,” Mr Salib said.
“It couldn’t have gone to a more deserving couple,” he added.
With another Double Win Day just around the corner, Lotterywest spokeswoman Pina Compagnone said she hoped the State’s run of Lotto luck would continue.
“What’s twice as nice is Double Win Day is on again this Wednesday. That means if our players win a prize in Divisions 2-6 it will be automatically doubled,” she said.
“On our last Double Win Day Division 2-6 winners shared in over half a million dollars in prizes so it’s a great time to pick up a ticket,” she added.
For every dollar spent on Lotto games over a third is returned to benefit the community. In Rockingham alone, almost three quarters of a million dollars has been returned to the community this financial year through Lotterywest grants.
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Media Enquiries: Pina Compagnone: 9488 6227/0438 996 884