REGINA — Regina resident Dale McEwen says it's a good stress to win $70 million.
When he checked his Lotto Max ticket for the April 1 draw, he ruined his family’s ski trip, but there were no hard feelings as he discovered he was about to bring home the largest win ever in the Western Canada lottery region.
“Ski trip ruined!” he laughed while claiming the prize earlier this month. “Basically, all we’ve been doing since we found out is figuring out what we will do now.”
McEwen and his family were driving west through Alberta on their way to B.C. when they stopped at South Country Co-op Gas Bar at 7 East 3rd Avenue in Dunmore, Alta., on April 1, where McEwen picked up his ticket for the Lotto Max draw that night.
While waiting to go for dinner the night after the draw, McEwen thought “I might as well check my tickets.”
When the Lotto Spot! app told him he was about to be $70 million richer, he couldn’t believe his eyes. He immediately shared the news with his partner.
“I told her right away. We were trying to figure out if it was real,” he said. “We checked again using the app on her phone.”
“We sat there dumbfounded for a while,” laughed McEwen. “We didn’t know what to do, so I signed the ticket right away and then we called the phone number on the back.”
The family cut their trip short and immediately returned to Saskatchewan to start the process of claiming their prize.
“I can’t even describe it,” explained McEwen while claiming his prize. “Dreaming about winning and actually winning are two very different feelings. You think you know what it would feel like, but when it’s in your hands, your mind will not stop and you can’t even sleep.”
The winner already has some big plans for his windfall.
“We’re just going to use it to help family, do some travelling and we’re going to upgrade a few things,” he said.
“It is stressful – but not a bad stress,” he added with a laugh.
McEwen won by matching all seven of the winning numbers for the April 1 draw: 7, 10, 18, 29, 38, 43 and 50.
The $70 million Lotto Max jackpot is the largest to be won in Western Canada and is the biggest jackpot ever awarded in Saskatchewan by a $10 million margin. The next three largest jackpots in Saskatchewan have been:
In August 2016, a $60 million Lotto Max prize was won by a Neville resident.
- A Saskatoon local won $55 million on the Oct. 19, 2021, Lotto Max draw.
- A Saskatoon resident took home the $50 million Lotto Max prize from the Jan. 7, 2022, draw.
McEwen’s $70 million win also caps off a six-month long run of wins in Saskatchewan. From Oct. 2 to April 1, Saskatchewan players have won $200 million in lottery jackpots.
- $70,000,000 - Lotto Max - April 1, 2022 – Regina
- $55,000,000 - Lotto Max - Oct. 19, 2021 – Saskatoon
- $50,000,000 - Lotto Max - Jan. 7, 2022 – Saskatoon
- $20,000,000 - Lotto Max - Feb. 15, 2022 – Yorkton
- $2,000,002 - Western 649 - Nov. 3, 2021 – Saskatoon
- $1,000,000 - Lotto 6/49 - Oct. 2, 2021 – Regina
- $1,000,000 - Lotto 6/49 - Nov. 10, 2021 – Saskatoon
- $1,000,000 - Western Max - March 29, 2022 - Grenfell
The odds of matching all seven numbers on a Lotto Max draw are 1 in 33 million per play.
Sask Lotteries is the fundraiser for more than 12,000 sport, culture, recreation and community groups. Learn about games, jackpots, winning numbers and more at sasklotteries.ca.
