Syndicate manager said that a heavy rain shower led them to buy the lucky ticket
Paul Vambeck and his wife Adrienne, with staff members Tom Byrne, Rebecca Moran and Aisling Redmond, outside Earls in Wicklow town, where the winning National Lottery Daily Millions ticket was sold.
A family syndicate who won a life-changing €1 million through the Daily Millions draw have spoken about how perilously close they came to missing out on purchasing the winning ticket.
The family purchased their winning ticket for the 9pm draw at Earls on Abbey Street in Wicklow town, which lead to them scooping the Daily Million top prize on September 9.
The lucky family visited Lottery HQ on Friday to collect their prize, and explained how an unexpected purchase of the ticket, brought about by a heavy rain show, resulted in an unforgettable experience.
The syndicate manager admitted that the unpredictable Irish weather meant they came very close to not buying a ticket for the draw at all.
“For a change, I can a say that the lashing rain worked in my favour. I had no plans to go to the shop at all, instead I was going to hang a shelf in our shed – a job I had been putting off, the weather wasn’t making it easy. I took that as a sign to head to the shop, so I picked up a few bits and got my ticket.”
“I can safely say that I am never checking my ticket at night time again! I checked the ticket just as I got into bed and when I saw I won the top prize, do you think there was a chance of me sleeping that night? I ended up getting out of the bed to make a cup of tea and calm myself before telling the family what we won.
“I’ll be checking my tickets in the morning now in future, that’s for sure! I have kept the ticket close ever since the win. It’s been safely tucked away in my wallet where I can check every so often that it’s still there.”
Speaking after Earls of Abbey Street were announced as the selling location of the winning ticket, Paul Vambeck, who has owned the shop for 25 years, said: “Our customers have had a few big wins over the years, but this is the biggest so far which has really brought a lot of excitement to the shop. The team here in store were delighted when we got the call from the National Lottery… A massive congratulations to the winner and we hope they are enjoying the win.”
Meanwhile, tonight’s EuroMillions jackpot is a guaranteed €130 million. If an Irish player scoops the staggering amount on offer, they will become the 19th EuroMillions jackpot winner ever to be seen in Ireland.