Calgary couple wins $7M on Daily Grand ticket

Two Calgarians are celebrating a big lottery win that has left them $7-million richer.

Andrea and John Wittig say they don’t typically play the lottery, aside from during the holidays when they buy a few scratch tickets.

Andrea says she bought a Daily Grand ticket on a whim at the Superstore on Macleod Trail, checking it in the store.

“(The cashier) checked it for me,” she said in a Monday news release.

“Then he just looked at me and said, ‘Congratulations!’ It took me a long time to realize just how much I’d won.”

John was waiting in the car at the time and says he was confused.

“(Andrea) was staring out the window at me and suddenly there were tears,” he said.

“Half a dozen people came out of the store to tell me congratulations. It was quite an experience.”

The Wittigs won the May 27 Daily Grand draw by matching all five main numbers — 16, 27, 36, 45, and 47 as well as the grand number, 2, to win the game’s top prize: $1,000 a day for life, or a single payment of $7 million.

The couple chose the lump sum prize. 

While they are still deciding what to do with their winnings, Andrea says they do want to go on vacation.

“We were thinking maybe a European river cruise,” Andrea said.

“I’ve also been needing to get a newer vehicle because mine is 20 years old, so this is perfect timing.”