There is just a sliver of hope that the oldest unclaimed division one lotto prize in the country will be claimed before it expires.
The winner of a $1 million reward is still at large, after purchasing a successful Gold Lotto ticket at a Sunshine Coast news agency in late 2016.
But the clock is is ticking.
Lotto participants have seven years to claim their prizes in Queensland, which means there’s less than five months left for the ticket holder to claim their prize.
Related story: $2m windfall: lotto players urged to check tickets
The Lott’s Matt Hart said it was still possible that someone could come forward with the winning ticket.
“We’re in the business of paying prizes and haven’t given up hope of uniting this prize with its rightful owner,” he said.
“We’ve had division one winners come forward months and years after their win to claim their prize.”
The Monday Gold Lotto ticket was purchased for Draw 3618, held on December 19, 2016.
The person was the sole winner of Division 1.
The correct numbers were 4, 6, 10, 11, 33 and 38 with supplementary numbers 23 and 28.
“Since the prize was won, we’ve been continually urging players in the region to check any tickets they may have around the home, office and car,” Mr Hart said.
“Remarkably, many previous division one winners tell us they found their winning tickets hiding in plain sight – on the fridge door, in their wallet or purse, or in the car glove box.”
Mr Hart said some people had found winning tickets long after draws were held.
“One of my most memorable winners was a man who was cleaning his car,” he said.
“He found an old lottery ticket in a reusable shopping bag and thankfully had the presence of mind to check that ticket.
“That’s when he realised he’d won a million dollars a year earlier.”
Mr Hart said lotto participants could make it easier to collect winnings.
“This unclaimed prize is a great reminder for people to register their entry to a player card or online account,” he said.
“If the ticket holder had done this, we would have been able to contact them immediately after the draw and they could have been enjoying this prize during the past years.”
A staff member at the news agency that sold the winning ticket still held hope that the $1m prize would be claimed.
“There’s always the possibility but time is running out,” she said.
“There are only a few months left to claim it.
“It would make for a great story if someone claimed it after more than six-and-a-half years.”
Like stories that inform, connect and celebrate the Sunshine Coast? So do we. Join an independent local news revolution by subscribing to our FREE daily news feed at the bottom of this article.
She said the ticket could be anywhere.
“There are lots of theories about what could have happened,” she said.
“It could have been a traveller who was staying on the Sunshine Coast during the Christmas holidays and the ticket could have floated out of the pocket of their board shorts.
“Or it could be stashed away in the bottom of a drawer in a caravan or something like that.”
She said the missing winner and ticket were “commonly talked about” at the news agency.
The winner will need evidence to claim their prize, including the original winning ticket.
They can fill out Prize Claim Form and present their ticket to The Lott at one of their head offices or via post. For more information, see The Lott.
Update – July 26: Sunshine Coast News elected not to publish the name or location of the news agency that the ticket was sold at, after it received undue attention last year from people claiming to be the ticket holder. If you believe you may have won, contact The Lott.
