From Shed to Monaco Grand Prix: How Australian Lottery Winners Spend Their Winnings

Today, May 22, Australia will hold a Powerball drawing with a grand prize of AUD 150 million (over 9 billion rubles). This marks the third-largest jackpot in the history of the local lottery. In anticipation of the event, winners from recent draws shared how they spent their winnings.
Anna Hobdell, a representative from Lott, stated that most major prize winners purchased homes, enjoyed luxury vacations, or helped out family and friends. More than 50% of winners invested their prizes, 35% splurged on new cars, and 26% paid off their mortgages or acquired real estate. However, some winners opted for more unconventional choices.
For instance, one winner treated their entire family to a cruise just a week after Christmas, taking 38 relatives along for the journey. Another lucky individual fulfilled a lifelong dream by attending the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Monaco. Yet another winner took their family on a month-long trip to France and even went skydiving.
There were also those who chose to give back. One winner mentioned they are working on establishing a nonprofit organization to make donations to various charitable causes.
Some of the most unique purchases didn’t require hefty sums. Among the lottery champions was a person who bought a new shed and fence. Other affordable yet practical purchases included a refrigerator, washing machine, and leaf blower.
Currently, the largest individual lottery prize ever won in Australia remains the Powerball jackpot of AUD 107 million (6.44 billion rubles), which was claimed by a Sydney resident in 2019.
As a reminder, an Australian recently bought a lottery ticket for the first time and won AUD 2.5 million.