Ever heard a bizarre lottery story or know of someone who has won the lottery in the most unorthodox way? Finding a winning lottery ticket on the side of the road, getting fired from a job only to win the lottery the next day or offering a lottery ticket as a tip to a waiter which turns out to be the winning ticket – These things don’t just happen in movies but in real life too!
Here is a countdown of the most bizarre lottery wins:
Keeping your winning lottery ticket close to your chest
An 18-year-old British woman who worked as a waitress won the £7 million (R141 million in South Africa) EuroMillions Lottery in 2008. The young winner was in such shock and excitement when she found out that she had won – her dog bit her bottom. In all the commotion, the nervous new millionaire decided to keep her winning ticket in her bra for safekeeping. This may sound bizarre, but a poll found that 30% of women who win the lottery keep their winning ticket in their under garments.
A fortune cookie may be more truthful than you think
Powerball normally expects two to four winners per draw, however, in 2010, 110 tickets matched the second-highest Powerball prize. A lucky fortune cookie with the winning Powerball numbers had been sold in Chinese restaurants across the US. All 110 people who had played the ‘winning fortune cookie numbers’ won between $100,000 to $500,000 (R1,7 Million to R8,6 Million) on the Powerball draw. So next time, think twice about skipping on that fortune cookie.
Sharing is caring
Many would be surprised to know that the movie It Could Happen to You, which was released in 1994 is based on true events. A New York City Policeman had a meal at his favourite restaurant which he had been going to for the past eight years. Instead of tipping the waitress serving him (who he knew very well as she worked at the restaurant for 24 years) he offered her a deal to split whatever winnings the lottery ticket he had might win them. To cut a long story short, she accepted the deal and the policeman ended up winning $6 million (R103,5 Million) on the lottery the next day, he kept his word and the pair split the prize money.
When it is just not your time
In the late 90s, an Australian truck driver (Bill Morgan) suffered a fatal heart attack after he was involved in a horrific car accident. He was clinically dead for 14 minutes but remarkably woke up from a medical induced coma after 12 days perfectly healthy. Not long after his miraculous recovery, Bill decided to buy a scratch ticket from a lottery stall and won a car to the value of $17,000 (R293,512) After hearing about Bill’s win, a local news agency asked him to re-enact his win for a news feature, he scratched off another lottery ticket and unbelievably the ticket had won him $170,000 (R2,9 Million)!
Have you dreamt off some lucky numbers lately or read a fortune that says “you are going to win the lottery”? – don’t ignore it! Place your bets on LottoStar’s Africa Millions Draw and you could win a payout of over R1,9 billion.
