Christmas comes early for Wexford Scratch Card player who claimed €100,000 top prize

 

A Wexford man got the festive cheer underway early this year after scooping the top prize of €100,000 on a €10 Christmas Countdown Scratch Card. The winning Scratch Card was purchased at the Spar store on Kilmore Quay in Co. Wexford.  

The winner admitted that it was only by chance that he made the purchase which led him to being a festive top prize winner. 

“I hadn’t even planned to go to the shop that day. I just popped in to get a few bits and when I was at the counter paying, I said sure I might as well get a Scratch Card and decided on a Christmas one. I was sitting in the kitchen scratching it and as soon as I saw two of the Fireplace symbols, I was keeping my eyes peeled for the all-important third one. When the three fireplaces were there in front of me, I didn’t make a reaction, there was no panic, nothing. I put the scratch card away and then about ten minutes later, I took it back out and it sunk in just how much I won. I signed it immediately and took photos and then made my plan to get to Lotto HQ.”

The Wexford winner never thought he would be able to call himself a top prize winner so is overjoyed with the win. 

“When you buy a Scratch Card, you always dream of winning one of the big prizes but you never think it will actually happen to you. To be honest, even if I had have gotten the three candycanes, which would have been a €10 prize and my money back, I would have been happy. I am going to let the news properly sink in and make my plans in the New Year. It really is a wonderful way to end the year.” 

Photo Caption: Marty Whelan launches National Lottery Christmas Scratch Card range

The National Lottery has three festive Scratch Cards on offer this Christmas, with a total prize fund of over €6.9 Million.  

They are:  

   • Christmas Countdown, with two top prizes of €100,000 (One top prize remaining). Price €10  

   • Merry Money, with a top prize of €20,000. Price €5  

   • Hampers & Cash offers the chance of winning one of 500 hamper prizes and over €2 Million in prizes, including the top prize of €30,000. (Two top prizes out of four remaining) Price €3.  

  The winning on the National Lottery Christmas Scratch Cards does not stop there as you get to enter the second chance Christmas Bonus Draw online for every Christmas Scratch Card you buy. Over a 12-week period, one lucky player will win a whopping €5,000 prize every week.   

In addition to the 12 weekly bonus draws, on December 22nd, from all valid weekly entries received up to that date, the National Lottery will hold a special draw where an additional 12 players will win €5,000 each, just before Christmas.  

With the festive season of gifting well and truly underway, the National Lottery has also reminded players hoping to gift National Lottery products this Christmas to gift responsibly. 

  A National Lottery spokesperson added: “We are reminding our players and everyone hoping to spread the festive cheer with our Christmas games, to support our ‘Gift Responsibly’ campaign when purchasing any National Lottery product as a gift. At any time of the year, it is always important to gift responsibly. The National Lottery encourages our players to keep lottery play for those who are aged 18 years and older."  

Nearly 30 cent in every €1 spent on National Lottery games goes back to Good Causes in the areas of sport, youth, health, welfare, education, arts, heritage and the Irish Language. In total, more than €6 Billion has been raised for Good Causes since the National Lottery was established 36 years ago. In 2022 alone, €259.5 Million was raised for local Good Causes in communities across Ireland.   

Play National Lottery games responsibly, play for fun.