Army Syndicate Celebrates Big Irish Lotto Win
Last Updated: Thursday 29th July 2021, 15:16 pm
There is a special atmosphere in one army barracks in Kilkenny this week after a syndicate of 20 soldiers came forward to claim a fantastic Irish Lotto prize of €452,700. The windfall has arrived at a particularly good time for the group, with a number of the members preparing to get married, buy houses or start families.
The group, from the 3rd Infantry Battalion at Stephens Barracks, consists of 18 privates, one corporal and one sergeant. They formed the syndicate in January 2015, but are crediting a recent switch in their playing habits as a possible reason for their success, after matching five main numbers plus the Bonus Ball in the draw on Saturday 27th August to win €22,635 each. Previously they bought tickets from the shop, but then started playing Irish Lotto online.
“Our first online ticket purchase in May was a Quick Pick and we decided to keep those same numbers going. Good thing we did,” said syndicate spokesperson Daniel McGrath from Cork as the group collected their prize on Tuesday, before revealing they planned to have a few celebratory drinks and a day off work.
For one member of the syndicate, it was not the first time that someone from their family had won a large lottery prize after playing in a syndicate. Evan Powers, the youngest person in the group at 23, explained: “I actually had a brother who was part of a syndicate last year in Dungarvan who won €22,000 each as well. So that’s a strange coincidence.”
The advantage to playing in a syndicate is that you can own a share of more tickets without having to splash out more money on the full cost of all those entries. While players have to split any prizes they win, they have increased their odds of success. It is a popular option with many fans of Irish Lotto, although some players prefer to play on their own and stick to their favourite numbers.
A Kildare farmer and his hairdresser wife showed that persistence can pay off after they won the Irish Lotto Plus 1 top prize of €500,000 in the draw on Saturday 10th September, saying: “We’ve been playing the same numbers for 15 years. We usually play online but for a change we bought our Lotto ticket in the shop last Friday.”
Whether you play in a syndicate or prefer to go it alone and have had the same numbers for several years, you never know when it could be your lucky day. You have to be in the draw to have a chance of winning, though, and an Irish Lotto jackpot of €2.5 million will be on offer in Saturday’s game after a rollover last night. Good luck!
