‘So excited and happy’: Courtice lottery winner planning trip to Japan

The winning ticket was purchased at Rosswell Convenience on Rosswell Drive.

A Courtice man who has been playing the lottery ever since he turned 18 has won his first major prize. Forrest Sanford won an Encore prize of $100,000 in the June 3 Lotto 6-49 draw. He found out he won when he checked his ticket at a store’s self-checker.

“I thought maybe the scanner was broken when I first saw the prize amount. I asked the store clerk to validate my ticket, and the lottery terminal froze. It turns out it was real — I had won $100,000.

I was so excited and happy,” Sanford said in an Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation news release. He then messaged his wife. “At first, she thought I was messing with her.

Once she realized I was serious, she was thrilled for me. We later shared the news with our family, who were just as excited,” he said. What’s next for the lottery winner?

Sanford said he plans to use his windfall to invest, save and take a trip to Japan. “It’s a great feeling to have won $100,000 with OLG. This prize will help with our future and make life more comfortable,” he said.

Encore can be played in conjunction with most lottery games for an additional $1.