Hundreds of Australians were barred from entering Thursday night’s $200million Powerball draw thanks to an unexpected error.
More than 10 million people – about half of the nation’s adult population – were expected to buy a ticket for the record-breaking draw.
And the mad rush to snap up a ticket caused problems for Oz Lotteries, which was unable to process all of the last-minute entries in time.
Refunds had to be issued to a ‘small portion’ of syndicate players who bought their tickets during a late rush.
Hundreds of Australians were barred from entering Thursday night’s $200million Powerball draw thanks to an unexpected error
‘The bulk of the ticket orders were placed on time, however a small portion of the more complicated syndicate entry requests were unable to be placed, with the money refunded to customers,’ Oz Lotteries said on Friday.
‘This was due to the nature of how syndicate entries are filled and the sheer load on servers in the final moments of the draw.’
An earlier deadline will be introduced when large jackpots are at stake in future.
Two lucky Aussies split the $200million prize, taking home $100million each.
A woman from Hawthorne in Brisbane’s northeast called the Lott on Friday morning to confirm she was the joint winner,
She checked her winning entry around 6am while she was getting ready to go to the gym only to make the shocking discovery that she had the winning numbers.
The woman was left in disbelief when officials told her she had won.
More than 10 million people – about half of the nation’s adult population – were expected to buy a ticket for the record-breaking draw
‘Oh my god.
Is this even real?’ she said.
‘This feels like a dream, and I just need to wake up! I’m in shock. I don’t know what to say.’
She said she decided to check her ticket after waking up little earlier than usual for her gym class.
‘I scanned the ticket on The Lott app and all the winning numbers immediately lit up and I saw that I’d won $100 million on my phone.
‘I started to pace the floor back and forth and question if it was even real.
I didn’t know who to call or what to say. I was slapping my face and telling myself to wake up!’
She said she bought the ticket at the Oxford Street news agency in Bulimba in a bid to change her career path.
She plans to also head off on an overseas trip with her family after snaring the fortune.
‘I’ve always wanted to start up my own business and I don’t know where to begin but now it will be within reach.
‘I’d love to purchase some acreage in Queensland and even take my loved ones to Italy next year for a beautiful holiday!’
Two lucky Aussies split the $200million prize , taking home $100million each
The woman joins a mum from Singleton on the NSW north coast who won half the $200million jackpot.
She plans to quit her job immediately and travel the world.
The woman and her husband, had their lives ‘turned upside down’ on Thursday night after checking their ticket and seeing all of their numbers matched the record-breaking $200million draw.
The couple picked up a phone call from The Lott on the first ring in sheer excitement after winning the grand prize.
‘It’s a lot of money, a lot of money to fathom,’ the woman told The Lott official.
‘I mean you joke about winning but never expect it to happen to you.
‘My partner is here with me now, he’s a bit in shock.
He loves his job, so I don’t know if he’ll be retiring.’
She said her family would be celebrating their win on the weekend but the woman is yet to decide how she wants to spend the money.
‘There’s always a lot of hypothetical questions of what I would want to do power cbd gummies have thc but now I’m just lost for words.
I have no idea.’
The winning numbers in Powerball draw 1446 were 12, 33, 23, 35, 1, 26 and 32. The all-important Powerball number was 10.