An Imbil man has been left in ‘shock’ after unwrapping the ultimate birthday gift – a $100,000 Instant Scratch-Its top-prize win.
 
The $5 Celebrating 40 Years Instant Scratch-Its ticket was purchased at Nextra Fraser Gateway Newsagency, Shop 22-23 Stockland Shopping Centre, Urraween.
 
When we spoke to the winning man this morning, he was still reeling from the excitement of discovering his bountiful birthday present.
 
“How great is it!” the winning man exclaimed.
 
“I received the ticket as a birthday gift from my mum’s partner a few days before my birthday. But I couldn’t wait until my birthday to open it.

“And what a gift to receive this year! Best birthday ever!

“I won the prize on the last game. So when I was scratching it, I thought it was a losing ticket, so I kept saying, ‘Oh bugger! Oh bugger!’.
 
“Then when I reached the end, I thought I’d won $10,000.
 
“But a few years ago, I scratched an Instant Scratch-Its ticket and thought I’d won $10,000, but I was wrong, so I didn’t want to get my hopes up again. I thought it couldn’t be real.
 
“When my wife came home, I asked her to check the ticket for me, and we discovered it was a $100,000 win!

“We were in a bit of shock. Honestly, I felt numb. Just wowzer!

“I called my sister, mum and her partner, and they were all blown away.
 
“My grandparents had always been the type of people to buy Instant Scratch-Its tickets and when I told my mum, she said, ‘Nan and Pop would be rolling in their graves!’.
 
“I wanted to take the next day off work to visit the winners room, so I told my boss I’d had a big win, but he said, ‘I'd rather you didn’t take the day off', so I was pretty bummed about that!

“I went out to dinner with my wife instead and I ordered the cheapest thing on the menu because I’m a budgeter through and through, but my wife went all out with her order.”

With $100,000 about to hit his bank account, the overjoyed man said he would use his prize to spoil his family. 
 
“We’ve been through some tough times over the past few years, and we’ve been emotionally exhausted from it all, so this is going to really help,” he shared.
 
“I’m going to put it in the bank for a rainy day and share some with my mum, her partner and my sister.”
 
Nextra Fraser Gateway Newsagency manager Kylie Bromhead said she and the team were overjoyed to hear their outlet had sold a top prize-winning Instant Scratch-Its ticket.
 
“This win is especially exciting as it’s our first Instant Scratch-Its top prize win since 2021,” she said.
 
“The atmosphere in our shop was electric when the customer presented their winning ticket, highlighting the continued success and excitement surrounding our lottery and Instant Scratch-Its offerings.
 
“This recent victory also marks the third major win at our store since June 2024.
 
“We extend our heartfelt congratulations to the winner and look forward to more celebrations in the future. Our team is excited to continue being a part of our customers' success stories.”