I can only imagine the sheer, unbridled joy that comes with realising you’re holding the ticket that lands you R23,7 million.

On Tuesday, we wrote about the unclaimed jackpot that was set to expire on September 19. That would be a full year after it was purchased from the Shell Amberfield petrol station in Rooihuiskraal, Centurion.

If nobody had claimed the winnings, they would have been donated to charity. Before you get too upset with charity’s loss, remember that the National Lotteries Commission has a history of squandering those donations.

Right, back to the millions in question via IOL:

The winner told ITHUBA that he suspected that he could be a winner when he saw the details of the winning ticket in the media. It is believed he bought the ticket for R30 at the Shell Garage in Centurion.

Full of hope, he went through all the tickets he had in his possession to see if he could find one that matched the specified date. When he found it, the overjoyed winner dashed to the ITHUBA office in Sandton.

“We have verified the ticket and we can confirm that we have found the winner of the R23.774 Million LOTTO jackpot,” said Khensani Mabuza, Corporate Relations Executive at ITHUBA.

Mabuza urged players to safeguard their tickets and write their names and ID numbers at the back of each ticket they purchased. She also encouraged players to regularly check tickets after each draw to avoid missing out on winning big.

Checking the tickets is half the fun, but it’s also the part where the daydreams of untold riches go to die.

Tomorrow’s Powerball Jackpot currently sits at a R100 million guaranteed jackpot, in case you’re keen to dabble.

[source:iol]