KEY POINTS:
It was August 1, 1987 - the night New Zealand became the home of Lotto.
Hosted by radio presenter Doug Harvey and dancer Ann Wilson, alongside "Tulipe" - the automated, tamper-proof number picker - the nation watched in eager anticipation as the first-ever Lotto draw was made.
4
- 29 - 16 - 40 - 8 - 32. Bonus number: 30
Four people claimed first division that night, each winning $89,952.
It may seem like small change these days, but for many, it was the stuff of dreams.
As the slogan says: "Lotto, what would you do..."
Twenty years on, Kiwis around the country continue to dream of winning Lotto.
It's worth a bit more these days. This weekend's birthday draw is worth $5.5 million, plus three $1 million bonus prizes.
Over the past two decades, Lotto has given away more than $3.6 billion in prizes, created 335 millionaires and distributed $2.3 billion back into the community through the Lottery Grants Board.
We fossicked through the Herald's archives to find some of the more unusual Lotto stories - from the first-ever counterfeit Lotto ticket to a golden ticket that went to the grave.
TWENTY YEARS OF WINNERS
October 1987
An attempt to claim a $1 million Lotto prize was quickly foiled due to the "childish" nature of the counterfeit.
The claimant entered the winning numbers after the draw and then cut and pasted the winning combination onto an old, non-winning ticket.
The fake ticket was mailed to the Lotto head office in Wellington, where it was quickly passed on to the fraud squad.
The case, which was the first bogus Lotto claim, came just two months after the lottery began.
August 1988
A Christchurch student borrowed $5 to buy a Lotto ticket, and walked away a millionaire.
The student, in his early 20s, said he would continue his studies and carry on living as usual.
He did not say if he had paid back the original $5 loan.
February 1989
Dreams of becoming a millionaire were quickly dashed when it emerged 21 people won first division.
The first division prize pool of $1.1 million, usually shared by no more than four - was split 21 ways, leaving winners with just $53,187 each.
Though highly unusual, the Lotteries Commission said it was not surprising there were so many winners.
"Such is the luck of the draw," said CEO David Bale.
September 1989
An Invercargill 3-year-old gave her Dad a gift to remember, when she picked the winning numbers for the Father's Day draw.
The girl and her cousin picked numbered stones out of a bucket before buying the winning ticket.
The family claimed $802,499 with the first division win.
October 1990
A misunderstanding between a young Dunedin man and a Lotto salesman led to the man winning $424,114.
The man handed over $5 intending to buy an Instant Kiwi.
Instead, he was given a Lotto ticket, which he did not bother to exchange.
The man later returned to the outlet with a bottle of champagne for the staff.
July 1992
Lotto's youngest first division prize winner had to wait five years before he could spend his winnings.
The 13-year-old winner's parents put the $18,785 prize money into a trust, which could not be accessed until the winner was 18.
Lotteries Commission chief executive David Bale said there was no age limit on purchasing Lotto tickets but winners under the age of 18 could not claim prizes over $1000 without a legal guardian.
December 1993
It was a case of hard luck when a Motueka man missed out on a $1.3 million first division prize because a line was missed off his card.
The error came about due to a malfunctioning machine, which led to the bottom line not printing the sign-off sentence, "Please check your numbers".
Though the Lotteries Commission admitted an error had been made, it said it was a case of bad luck.
December 1996
Twenty Glenbrook steel mill workers struck Christmas gold with a $1 million win.
Each received $50,000.
The staff in the supply department had religiously put in $2 a week for Lotto tickets for the past three years, before striking it lucky.
September 1999
It was a case of beginner's luck for 10 truck drivers who formed a Lotto syndicate just one week before winning a $1 million bonanza.
The winning ticket, which was the syndicate's first Lotto purchase, saw each driver walk away with $101,933.
May 2000
A Blenheim Lotto player repeated the same line of numbers four times on one ticket, winning four or the seven first-division shares.
The winner took away $186,262 per line, or a total of $745,048.
January 2003
A South Aucklander scooped $4.1 million from double-banger Lotto and Powerball draws, using virtually the same numbers on two separate tickets.
The winner won Lotto's $150,000 first-division prize twice in the same six-ball draw - and then struck the $3.8 million jackpot with a seventh number for the Powerball draw.
A spokeswoman said: "It is the first time someone has won Lotto first division on one ticket and then also won Lotto and Powerball on a separate ticket."
June 2004
A couple who won $5 million dollars in 2004 didn't know they had won - because they were watching an All Blacks test.
The St Heliers couple were so enthralled in the game they forgot to check their numbers, however they soon discovered they held the winning ticket, which made them the second biggest winners in Lotto history.
November 2005
A dairy owner accused of defrauding a $30,000 Lotto winner claimed a "Robin Hood" defence in 2005, telling police he gave the winning second-division ticket away to another regular customer - a man whose wife was battling cancer.
The dairy owner, based on the Kapiti Coast, was charged with using a document and with obtaining by deception and was stripped of his Lotto franchise.
July 2006
It seems one Greymouth resident's luck was up last year when they died before cashing in a winning $250,000 ticket.
The lotteries commission confirmed the winning ticket had been bought at Greymouth New World and remained unclaimed.
Word around town was that the ticket went down with the casket at the funeral.
