‘I checked the account and just couldn’t believe what I was seeing’
12:01, 14 Oct 2026Updated 13:18, 14 Oct 2026
Lotto balloon (stock)(Image: National Lottery)
A Cork syndicate has claimed the life-changing Lotto jackpot they scooped last month. But when they were first told they had won – they were convinced there was some sort of mix-up.
The family won a massive €3,641,884 while playing online on 2nd September. They recently made the big trip to the National Lottery‘s HQ to claim their winnings, and shared the story of how they found out about the windfall, and plans for their newfound fortune.
It all started when a family member was heading out to cut the grass and got a notification to check their National Lottery account. They had no idea why – and were soon left stunned after seeing an alert saying they had won big. They rushed to show the details to their wife, who had just returned home from shopping.
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They said: “I was getting ready to head out and cut the grass when the notification came through,” they recalled. “I checked the account and just couldn’t believe what I was seeing. My first thought was, ‘Did they send the message to the wrong person?'”
“The grass wasn’t cut that day,” they joked. “The rest of the day was a whirlwind of emotions. There was shock, excitement and a lot of staring at the screen wondering if it was actually real.
“I showed [my wife] the phone and it took about three looks before she believed it. She had only just come in from doing the shopping and it was a struggle for either of us to focus on unpacking the bags because we were both in complete shock.”
Some members of the syndicate have their sights set on buying new homes with their share of the prize. This family, however, has nothing major planned and is trying to remain as grounded as possible.
“We already had a trip booked, so we decided to treat ourselves and upgrade the stay. It was the perfect excuse to celebrate and it was absolute bliss,” they said.
“We’ll continue to live life as normal. We’ll organise a family get together to celebrate properly and add an extra holiday or two along the way.”
This update comes just a week after the major €5.6m Lotto win in Cork, from a ticket sold at Mahon Point Shopping Centre. The National Lottery have not confirmed whether or not this prize has been claimed – so Rebels are still being urged to check their tickets.
This player won the jackpot in Wednesday’s Lotto draw (October 7), which had the numbers: 3, 17, 26, 29, 37, 42, and the Bonus was 38.
If you find out you’ve won big – the most important thing to do is stay calm. Your first step should be to sign the back of your Lotto ticket. Then, contact the National Lottery prize claims team on 1800 666 222 or email claims@lottery.ie to arrange the collection of your prize.