Kristin Macfarlane: New Zealand Lotto's MyLotto delays kept my dream alive

Ten people won a share of $50 million on Saturday. Photo / File

COMMENT:

When I found out a winning Lotto ticket was sold in Tauranga I immediately started thinking about the types of property I would invest my winnings in.

I wasn't even upset I'd be sharing "my $50 million" with nine others and actually thought it was better the jackpot was being spread out. I mean, having an extra more than $5 million each seemed a fair cash boost.

So, I attempted to confirm the ticket I had bought online the day before was one of the lucky ones in Saturday night's draw but the website had crashed and it's "opening hours" kept changing.

Apparently plenty of others across New Zealand had the same idea. I don't buy Lotto tickets regularly but when the jackpot increases so does my FOMO (fear of missing out) meter, and Saturday night's mammoth $50 million must-win draw was enough to pique interest in buying a ticket.

I know my chances are slim and don't legitimately think I will actually win the big prize but it's fun to start spending my winnings in my head.

My cousin and I even agreed to give each other $1m if one of us won the $50m.

Kiwis, it seems, didn't want to miss the opportunity to be in to win either as New Zealand Lotto confirmed they had sold the most tickets yet for Saturday night's draw - about half online - causing major disruptions in the processing of the tickets.

They've since revealed an upgrade to their MyLotto website and app will be ready by early 2021. They also apologised for the massive delays people faced to check their tickets online.

Unnecessary apology if you ask me.

Some may have been frustrated at the delay, but I was all for it because it meant there'd be a delay to learn there actually wouldn't be an extra casual $5m added to my bank account any time soon.

It meant I could continue to spend my virtual winnings in my head because, in reality, my budget is just a tad (a lot) smaller.

Overnight Monday I was able to check my ticket to confirm the inevitable: I was a winner. Of two extra tickets, that is, which means I guess my Lotto playing continues this week.

Once those are gone though, it won't be until the next big jackpot that I suck myself into playing because my FOMO will get the better of me. And I'm okay with that ... and I'm okay with a delay in finding out the results.