James Couper, a 46-year-old ferry port worker, purchased a Lucky Dip ticket from Tesco Extra in Greenock ahead of the draw, a decision that proved to be very fruitful. He was one of 1,423,727 players to claim a prize in the draw, with rewards ranging from a free Lucky Dip ticket for matching two main numbers to half of the £8.7 million jackpot for matching all six. The draw also saw one ticket holder secure a £1 million prize and 20 players win £20,000 courtesy of Lotto Millionaire Raffle.
The lucky player says he will take his 20-year-old daughter and 16-year-old son to Florida with the proceeds, as well as buying a new car and house. Couper admitted he initially thought his workmates were playing a trick on him when they read out the winning UK Lotto numbers during a lunch break. After he finally confirmed that he was one of the jackpot winners, he hid his ticket in a toy box for safekeeping and sat in a dark room with a cup of tea to help him get his head round his good fortune.
This is the second time this year that two ticket holders have shared the Lotto jackpot, following a similar result in the draw on Wednesday 18th January in which a pair of players struck lucky to split a £12.2 million sum. There have now been a total of four winners in 2017, a figure that players across the country will be hoping increases as the weeks pass.
If you fancy your chances of becoming a Lotto prize winner, tickets for this Saturday’s £5.6 million draw are available to buy online or from any authorised retailer. Best of luck.