Brisbane Man Wins $60 Million Powerball

A 30-year-old Brisbane man is the sole recipient of the gargantuan $60 million Powerball jackpot. Powerball draw 1338 took place on January 6 featuring a $60 million Division 1 prize. The lucky punter’s dreams came true as the balls fell 5, 15, 20, 27, 28, 29, 34, with the 8 Powerball completing the draw.

The Lott got hold of the Brisbane man, who wishes to remain anonymous, after a few missed phone calls.

“Mate, this is bloody unreal. I think anyone who gets hit with this info would think it’s surreal. It’s just unbelievable. There is a massive shock factor. You always daydream, but you never really expect it to happen. It’s a lottery after all.”

The Powerball winner plans on keeping his job, although that could be a joke.

“I know you’ve confirmed it, but initially, when I saw this on The Lott app, I thought this has to be a gee up or a glitch in the system. Surely I haven’t just won $60 million. I don’t think I’m going to get a lot of sleep tonight. It’s a lot to think about now. I know the money will help a lot of people. I can buy my first house, help family and friends, and have plenty of holidays.”

Four players won the Division 2 prize. Each received $216,329.20.

Fourteen Powerball Division 1 Winners in 2021

Last year saw the Division 1 Powerball jackpot hit 14 times. Those winners shared a collective $550 million. New South Wales made up seven of those millionaires, four hail from Queensland, two from Victoria, and one in Western Australia.

December 2, 2021, was the last time a Division 1 Powerball win occurred. A syndicate of 55 Western Australia women scored an $80 million win. All the ladies attend the same gym; they each walked away with $1.5 million.

The Lott released some fun facts about how Powerball winners splash the cash following a big win. Only 11% neglected to tell anyone about their life-changing win. More than 25% of winners donate money to charity, while around 40% purchased a new set of wheels.

Players Urged To Check Old Tickets

A spokesperson for The Lott urged players to check old tickets in light of the $60 million win. Matt Hart informed lottery players about 23 unclaimed division one prizes. Those prizes are worth a combined $25 million.

“As you’re cleaning up around the home this January, getting ready for the year ahead, keep an eye out for any unchecked lottery tickets. You could be the winner we’re looking for.”

“The oldest unclaimed division one win is in Queensland. The ticket is from June 2015, purchased in Morayfield, and won a Saturday Gold Lotto prize worth $1 million.”

Hart revealed one unclaimed prize is worth $4.8 million. Someone bought the winning ticket for Set for Life in April 2021 in Woden in the ACT. Imagine not claiming a $4.8 million prize!

Are Some People Luckier Than Others?

Information released by The Lott show some areas of Australia are luckier than others. For example, Victoria residents won $358,354,516 in 2021 alone. An anonymous player from North Melbourne won $80 million of that sum.

Furthermore, New South Wales Powerball players won $397,397,564 last year. This makes New South Wales the winningest Aussie area.

Nobody expects a lottery win, unless you are called Stefan Mandel. Mr Mandel, a Romanian-born Australia resident, won the lottery 14 times, mostly in the UK and Australia.

Mandel devised an algorithm that predicted five of the six winning numbers. He won a Romanian lottery for more than $19,000 but set his sights on bigger prizes.

The mathematician won the Virginia, United States, lottery for $27 million in 1992. Mandel chose this lottery because it only used 44 numbers, which limited the number of unique possibilities to 7.1 million. Others have more than 25 million combinations. The jackpot was so large that buying all the possible tickets guaranteed a win.

However, Mandel and his team only managed to buy 80% of the possible combinations. It did not matter because Mandel had the winning ticket in the several million tickets he held. His investors received $1,400 profit from their $4,000 investment. Mandel banked a $1.7 million consultation fee.