A Wellington couple are looking forward to buying their first home after one of them netted $1 million in Lotto thanks to a bonus ticket.
The woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, did not think much of it when she won a bonus ticket last week.
"My partner had reminded me to grab a ticket because Powerball was getting pretty big - and while I didn't scoop Powerball, I did win a bonus ticket which I thought was pretty good. After all, it meant I was in with another chance," she said.
The pair were at the supermarket on Thursday evening when the woman realised how lucky her bonus ticket had become.
READ MORE: $28m Lotto prize goes to 'so incredibly lucky' Auckland grandma
"As we were leaving the supermarket we stopped by the Lotto counter as I had a couple of tickets from a while back that I'd been carrying around in my purse," she said.
"I handed them to the lady at the Lotto counter and while she was checking them, I thought I might as well check my bonus ticket at the same time - so flicked open the Lotto NZ app to see if I'd had any luck."
"I was standing at the Lotto counter when I saw I had six numbers circled off on one line of my bonus ticket - and then the winning tune played on my phone. I stood there staring at my phone thinking, 'surely that’s a winner?'"
'$1 million winner' later showed on her screen. The couple then filled out the online prize claim form and headed home to plan what they would like to do with their winnings.
They are looking forward to using the $1 million to purchase their first home and set themselves up for the future.
The $1 million winning Lotto First Division ticket was sold on MyLotto for the draw on Wednesday, March 23.
The woman's win came ahead of an Auckland grandmother winning more than $28m on Saturday. The grandmother said spending her winnings would be centered around family.
"I'm going to take some time to work out what I want to do next, but would love to buy a house – that's always been a dream of mine. And I'd love to have a swimming pool for my kids and grandchildren to enjoy," she said.
"This win means so much to us and will make such a difference to our family – I feel so incredibly lucky."
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