Grandfather’s big birthday win

By Alesha Capone

A Werribee grandfather received an extra surprise on his birthday after winning $10,000 on an Instant Scratch-Its ticket he received as a gift.

The winning $1 Instant Scratch-Its ticket was purchased at Shopping on Clyde Lotto & Gifts, which is located in Melbourne’s south-east.

The grandfather, who asked not to be named, said he was given the Instant Scratch-Its ticket at a birthday lunch.

“I received the gift from a family member and I said, ‘We’ll have to scratch these before you go so we can see if I am a winner’,” he said.

“But we forgot with the excitement of the day, and it wasn’t until a few days later that I remembered I had to scratch them.

“So, I scratched them all off and realised I had three symbols.

“I called out to my wife and said, ‘You do need three of these to win right?’.

“I couldn’t believe my eyes. My wife came to look over my shoulder and she said, ‘You’re joking!’ – she couldn’t believe it either’.

When asked how he planned to enjoy his instant windfall, the grandfather said he would use it to upgrade his car.

“We’ve already been down to the dealership and chatted to them about what we can do to upgrade to a new car,” said.

“It will be great to be able to drive around in a flash new car!”

Shopping on Clyde Lotto & Gifts owner Heidi Keel said she was thrilled her outlet had sold a major prize.

“Congratulations to the winner, what a fantastic birthday present,” she said.

Between July last year and June this year, there were 118 Instant Scratch-Its top prize winners across the Lott’s jurisdictions, who collectively took home more than $12.14 million in top prizes.