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A Record CA$70 Million Jackpot for Burnaby Lotto Player
By Shane Addinall Oct 27, 2021 Big WinsA Burnaby citizen takes home her CA$70 million Lotto Max prize and the record for the largest lotto to be won by an individual in Canadian History. She bought her ticket on a whim and is waiting for reality to sink in.Christine Lauzon is British Columbia’s newest multi-millionaire and says she first wants the reality to settle in before she plans what to do with her money.
The Canadian claimed her CA$70 million Lotto Max winnings on 8 October. She purchased her winning ticket at a local store with a quick pick combination of numbers.
Lotto Max has two weekly draws, one on Tuesdays and the other on Fridays, and it starts with a seed jackpot of CA$10 million. The progressive jackpot caps at CA$70 million and players need to have 7 numbers matching to the draw in order to win the pot.
Quick Pick and Peanuts
On the 28th of September, Christine Lauzon visited a local Burnaby Shoppers Drug Mart when the idea sparked that she should purchase a lotto ticket. She bought a Quick Pick Lotto Max ticket along with a packet of peanuts. As it turns out, the gut feeling she had was seventy million times spot-on. Later that evening, she checked her numbers on the Lotto! app and noticed she had the winning numbers.
In a BCLC press release Ms Lauzon commented in a state of amazement:
“I just thought, why not buy a ticket?. I have definitely dreamed about it, but I never thought it would actually happen. You never think it’s going to happen. I can’t fully wrap my head around it all right now. I am so excited for what is to come.”
According to Ms Lauzon, it filled her with astonishment and once she gathered her thoughts, she told her roommate, who was ecstatic. Shortly thereafter, she told her father, and she recalled how he could hardly contain his emotions.
In an interview with BCLC on 8 October, she said that the thought still overwhelms her, and she has not decided exactly what she will do with her millions. Before receiving the novelty cheque with CA$70,000,000 written on it, she explained that the thought of it still makes her nervous and excited.
Christine Lauzon now holds the record for winning the largest lottery jackpot in Canadian history. She said she would contact her financial advisor for guidance and then give some of her winnings to immediate family and possibly donate to some charities she supports.
Other Lotto Millionaires
Ms Lauzon is the second BC citizen to win a double-digit Lotto Max jackpot in 2021. Gary H, from Kamloops, won a staggering CA$35,000,000 with the draw on 22 June. There have also been several winners in the MaxMillions category, walking away with CA$1 million this year. One of those winning tickets belonged to a group of co-workers who split a ticket 10 ways. They shared the pot with one other winning ticket, bringing their prize to CA$500,000.
All lotto winners taking part in the BC Lotteries must reveal their identity and conditions require that the BCLC publish their name and photo. According to BCLC, this is to ensure the public trusts that the rightful winner receives their prize.
In 2015, a Langley family who won CA$50 million tried to remain anonymous by creating a trust and claiming the prize that way. However, the BC Lottery Commission ruled that they may not, and the family ended up having their photo published.
What Are The Odds?
It turns out that Ms Lauzon had a 1 in 33,294,800 chance to win the life-changing jackpot and the fact that she purchased a Quick Pick ticket did not increase her odds.
Lottery is a game of chance, and although the BC Lottery paid CA$700,365,412 in total prizes for 2020, it is not a way to make money. Always play for fun and responsibly.
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