Lotto: Powerball jackpot grows to $20m this Saturday
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The numbers are in for tonight's Lotto draw, with nobody winning the $17 million Powerball jackpot.
Tonight's numbers were: 31, 4, 18, 34, 27 and 5.
The bonus ball was 30 and the Powerball was 8.
A lucky Lotto player from Whanganui won $1 million tonight with first division but Powerball was not struck and has rolled over to Saturday night, where the jackpot will be $20 million.
Strike Four has also rolled over tonight and will be $800,000 on Saturday night.
The life-changing $20 million sum would be the largest prize since a Kaikōura man won $8.2m last month.
He had no knowledge of his win until his partner texted him: "Did you win Lotto last night? Someone in Kaikōura did!"
Sure enough, he was New Zealand's newest multi-millionaire. The man was in "utter disbelief" of his win.
Tonight's prize would be the third largest win of 2022 after an Aucklander won the year's first Powerball draw of $21m in January.
Another Aucklander won $28.6m in March.
Powerball was not struck last Saturday, pushing tonight's potential prize money higher. Strike Four also rolled over, offering $500,000 this evening.
If players want to be in it to win it, tickets can be bought in-store, or on the MyLotto website or app before the draw closes at 7.30pm.
LottoNZ said the Powerball number that has been drawn the most this year was 2, however it said the chances for a big win was only 1 in 38m.
While tonight's draw could see someone $17m richer, LottoNZ has received flak after RNZ reported children as young as 9 were gambling through the Lotto.
Meanwhile, RNZ also reported LottoNZ was being urged not to launch an online Bingo game lest it increase gambling harm among Māori and Pasifika.
The Health Promotion Agency's 2020 Health and Lifestyles Survey found Māori were three times more likely to be moderate-risk or problem gamblers than non-Māori, and Pasifika were 2.5 times more likely.
LottoNZ acknowledged Gambling Harm Awareness Week, held last week. It said, "we're committed to minimising gambling harm and believe in educating all our players to play smart.
"We have numerous tips and resources available to players ... which encourages players to explore their beliefs and behaviours about gambling," it said.
But for those who do play tonight, LottoNZ advised people to check their tickets "as soon as possible". A number of Lotto players this year have been unaware of their multimillion-dollar winnings.
