A Sydney woman's $10.2 million prize win did not begin with screams, tears, or champagne. It began with a hang-up and a blocked number.
Only after Triple M Breakfast host Beau Ryan arrived at her home did the Riverwood resident accept that the luxury prize package she had won was real.
Here's what to know
According to 7News, the winner from Sydney's southwest hung up on Dream Home Art Union general manager Ben Sawkins and blocked his number, even though the Dream Home Art Union package included a multi-level home in Currumbin on the Gold Coast, along with $400,000 in gold bullion and a Land Rover Defender valued at $166,000.
Sawkins said he briefly reached her, but got nowhere.
"I actually spoke to the winner, and she hung up on me. I've texted her and emailed her. She thinks I'm selling her a ticket, or that it's a scam," Sawkins said.
After those early attempts failed, Sawkins turned to Triple M Breakfast, where hosts Beau Ryan, Cat Lynch, and Aaron "Woodsy" Woods joined a call to try to assure the woman the prize was real.
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She refused to budge.
In just two minutes on the line, she said, "I don't believe you" four times, and Ryan's offer to come to her home himself didn't immediately change her mind.
More background
Speaking with Ryan did little to ease her doubts, and she said, "I can't even get excited because I still don't believe it."
She said she has relatives in Cairns and on the Gold Coast, which gave the Queensland home extra meaning beyond its place in the prize package.
The former NRL player then left the studio and went home to deliver the news in person.
Once it finally sank in, the woman joked about going dancing with Ryan, a sharp change from the disbelief that had delayed everything.
What's being done?
Sawkins followed up on the cut-short phone call with a text and an email, then prepared a letter to mail to the winner.
"It's sometimes hard to get hold of winners because there's scams and sales calls, but the blocking is quite an impressive one," Sawkins said.
The same caution that protects people from unwanted contact can also make legitimate outreach harder.
"Absolutely still stunned, absolutely over the moon, but can't believe it, and I can't get excited," she said.
Where can I learn more?
That strange prize call isn't the only case where big-money claims and trust issues overlap. These stories cover a Euromillions fortune turned into charity, a devastating bank-call scam, and disputed million-dollar giveaway and lottery claims.
• In Europe, a Euromillions winner uses nearly all of $217M to launch an environmental charity.
• A woman lost her savings after a verified bank number led her to scammers.
• MrBeast faced backlash after a $2.4 million private jet became a contentious competition prize.
• America PAC was sued over an illegal $1 million lottery critics called fraudulent.
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