A family man from Peterborough, who holds down three different jobs, is hoping to spend a little more time on the golf course after he revealed the top prize on his National Lottery Bejeweled Hypercash Scratchcard, potting a whopping £80,000.
Father of three, Murray Bowring, 60, was on the way back from a gardening job when he stopped off for some essentials and decided to buy a Scratchcard for a bit of Friday fun.
He said: “I was pretty worn out after a day of weeding and lawn-mowing but stopped to pick up some supper before I started my night-shift at a local hotel.
“I got into the car with my shopping, popped on the radio and was about to start the car and head home when I decided to play the Scratchcard I’d just bought
“On the first Hypercash game I revealed a wad of money which meant a prize but I only vaguely revealed the amount, seeing an eight, I assumed it was an £8 win, and continued with the game.”
It was only when he had completed the rest of the scratchcard that Mr Bowring returned to the Hypercash game and revealed the £80,000 top prize.
“There I was, sitting in the car park trying to process that I’d got the £80,000 top prize. Initially I thought it was a joke and threw the scratchcard down on the passenger seat, then picked it up, threw it down again and so on.
“I must have picked up the scratchcard and put it back down on the seat about five times before I called my wife of 38 years at work to say it was very possible I’d just won £80,000.
“Pauline just said I was being an idiot and we’d talk about it when she got home from work.”
When Mrs Bowring did return home from her job as a mobile carer, the pair had a proper look at the scratchcard and deciding it definitely looked like a winner, called The National Lottery.
Murray said: “It was a tense process making the claim but when they confirmed I had a winner, all the tension disappeared as Pauline let out a scream of joy! I then had to rapidly calm down and go off to work so we didn’t really get a chance to think about it much more, in fact, I’m still struggling to process the win even now.”
A delighted Mr Bowring has banked his prize and is making plans for a more secure future for the Bowring family. While looking after his kin is top of the list for Mr Bowring, the workaholic who juggles a fulltime job as a night porter at a local hotel, with a part-time contract cleaner role and running a landscape gardening business, will also be giving himself a couple of treats.
Getting to the golf course will be a joy for Mr Bowring when he takes delivery of a Honda CRV from a local dealership that he looked at when he first discovered his win.
He said: “My family means everything to me so they will definitely be looked after first and foremost, just the thought of providing a little nest egg for all three of my children is simply wonderful.
“But I can’t pretend that I’m not very excited at the prospect of a few more rounds of golf and a new car. Swapping my old Suzuki for the shiny Honda CRV I spotted earlier this week is going to be a magical moment.
“It’s already been a lovely year for us. We celebrated my sixtieth in March and had booked a fortnight in Cornwall with our daughter to continue the celebrations.
“With this life-changing win in the bank that holiday is going to be one hell of a celebration and driving down there in my new car will be the icing on the cake.”
Mr Bowring’s winning Bejeweled Hypercash Scratchcard was bought at WH Smith at The Serpentine Hampton in Peterborough.
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