$22 Million New Zealand Powerball Jackpot Won in Taranaki
2019 may only be a few days old but the year has got off to the best start possible for a New Zealand Powerball ticket holder in Inglewood, Taranaki. They are NZ$22.3 million richer following a sensational jackpot win on Wednesday 2nd January.
What were the Numbers?
The winning numbers were 11, 15, 22, 31, 35, 39, plus the Bonus Ball 16 and Powerball 3. There were over 21,000 Powerball winners on the night, but the Taranaki ticket holder was the only one to match all six main numbers plus the Powerball to scoop the eight-figure jackpot.
Ticket holders can opt to enter the additional Powerball draw for an extra fee alongside the main Lotto draw. The jackpot winner won $22 million in Powerball, as well as £333,333 in Lotto. The Lotto jackpot is fixed at $1 million in every draw, and the Taranaki player was one of three Lotto ticket holders to win the six-figure Lotto sum after matching all six main numbers.
“You’ve Given Someone Their Hopes and Dreams”
The winning Powerball line was purchased from the Inglewood Book Centre on New Zealand’s North Island, owned by Lorraine and David Reed. Inglewood is a tiny town with a population of only 3,580 people, and the married couple placed a ‘Big Winner sold here’ poster outside their shop window following the exciting news. The book store has previously sold a winning ticket worth $1 million, around a decade ago, but nothing as substantial as this big win.
Lorraine revealed: “It would be nice for it (the winner) to be a local. At that the moment there’s a lot of tourists and visitors coming through. This is amazing. We were so excited– I mean we had only just sold the ticket, so imagine being the winner. It took my breath away. It was really exciting; very, very exciting. Let’s just say that we didn’t sleep much last night. You can’t be envious can you – you’ve given someone their hopes and dreams.”
Karen Moratti, Inglewood Community Board chairwoman, said: "Congratulations to David and Lorraine [Reeve] at the Inglewood Book Centre. It's wonderful that they had a big win there. They have had some wins before. Obviously we would love it to be that it's going to a local and I wish them all the very best with their big win. They might just go straight to Auckland, like some people do - try and keep it a little bit quiet, but in a small town that might not be so easy."
Taranaki’s Biggest Powerball Winner
It is the biggest ever Powerball win to come from Taranaki, eclipsing the $19 million won in April 2008 and $12.5 million claimed in November of last year. A Lotto New Zealand spokesperson has urged the winner to sign the back of their ticket and come forward to claim their winnings sooner rather than later. They have 12 months from the date of the draw in which to do so.
The Powerball jackpot has now automatically reset to $4 million following the latest win, so pick your numbers for this Saturday’s draw and you could be the next big winner of 2019. Best of luck!