"We are very grateful": New lottery winner is ready to share the wealth

Jolle Armstrong couldn’t believe her eyes when she checked her phone and saw the ticket that made her a lottery winner.

“I was in shock,” Armstrong recalled as she claimed her prize.

Armstrong walked away with $5 million after winning the LOTTO 6/49 Classic Draw on January 11. It is a life-changing win that almost didn’t happen.

Armstrong said she usually plays LOTTO MAX but this time she decided to change it up when she purchased her ticket from a 7-Eleven in Calgary the day before the draw. That decision turned her into a lottery winner.

The newly minted millionaire has some great plans for her windfall.

“It’s not lost on us how fortunate we are, and [we] plan to gift some of the winnings to family and of course our favourite charities, in addition to having some fun in retirement,” she said. “We are very grateful.”

“It’s overwhelming and exciting,” she added.

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Armstrong’s win marks the first Classic Draw jackpot win in Western Canada since the changes to the game.

Back in September, LOTTO 6/49 made several changes to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the game, including changing the main draw to the Classic Draw, which offers a $5 million jackpot on every draw.

The guaranteed prize draw became the new Gold Ball Jackpot, still offering a guaranteed winner on every draw, but now that winner takes home either a guaranteed $1 million prize or a growing jackpot that starts at $10 million and can grow to more than $60 million.