How a Sparkling Water Led to a $40-Million LOTTO MAX Win

Vancouver Resident’s LOTTO MAX ticket turned an ordinary errand into an unforgettable moment.

Daniel Chau wasn’t planning on buying a lottery ticket that day. He just wanted a can of Bubly.

It was a regular stop at a convenience store in Burnaby. It was the kind of everyday errand that comes and goes without much thought. A quick in-and-out. But something about the store employee’s cheerful energy made the moment stick with him.

Along with his sparkling water, Daniel, who often buys lottery tickets, decided to pick up a LOTTO MAX ticket.

Days later, he was at work, digging through his bag for a cough drop. That’s when he saw them, two forgotten lottery tickets at the bottom of his bag. He figured he might as well check them. But first, he had to update the BCLC Lotto! app.

“The first ticket didn’t win anything,” he told us when we sat down to speak with him. “Then I scanned the second one and it said $40 million...

I have never seen that many zeros in my life...

I dropped my phone and called BCLC right away.” He kept saying it. Over and over. “I have never seen that many zeros in my life.”

At that moment, the reality of the win started to sink in.

No one around him knew at first. Not even his partner.

“My partner doesn’t know yet,” he had said, smiling. “I want to share the news with them in a special way.”

Now, that moment has become a shared celebration they’ll never forget.

Daniel’s voice softened when asked what the win means to him.

“It opens up the opportunity for me to give back to the community and world around me. It’s not meaningful unless you can share it with the world and those that need it.”

He hasn’t decided exactly what he will spend the money on. He hasn’t mapped out every destination he wants to visit. But he knows this: he wants to do something good with what he’s been given. He wants to give back. He wants to share.

And it all started with a Bubly, a mundane errand, and a moment he’ll never forget.

Must be 19+ to play. If you gamble, use your GameSense.