Lottery players on the Prairies won big during 2016.
The Western Canada Lottery Corporation said 57 prizes of $1 million or more were claimed on tickets bought in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, at a total of over $218 million.
The biggest win came on Aug. 12 when Mary Wernicke of the small Saskatchewan community of Neville – population 83 – won $60 million playing Lotto Max.
READ MORE: Neville, Sask. woman wins $60 million on Lotto Max ticket
Wernicke said she had a feeling she had won something as she had very itchy hands – an old superstition that money is coming your way.
She said the money will be used to help her family.
“I’ve dreamed and prayed about that for a long time,” Wernicke said.
WATCH BELOW: Mary Wernicke with tears of joy after $60 million Lotto Max win
Neville wasn’t the only small town on the Prairies to have a big winner.
Lois Olsen of Irma, Alta., won $50 million playing the Lotto Max draw on Nov. 11.
READ MORE: Alberta senior wins $50M jackpot: ‘I’m thinking of buying a new SUV’
Olsen said the money will be used to help her entire family, including grandkids and great-grandkids, along with something special for her.
“I’m thinking of buying a new SUV, and I’m hoping to do some travelling,” Olsen said. “I used to travel a lot, and I’d like to do a little more now.”
WATCH BELOW: ‘I said to the girl, there is something wrong with this machine’: Lottery winner Lois Olsen
Alberta was also home to two winners in the newest lottery game, Daily Grand.
One person in Edmonton and another in Calgary won the top prize in the new game – either $1,000 a day for life or a one-time payment of $7 million. Both took the $7 million payout.
READ MORE: 1st-time Alberta ticket buyer wins $7M lottery from Daily Grand
Overall, there were 38 winners in Alberta for a total of $130.8 million, eight Saskatchewan winners for a total of $74 million and 11 winners in Manitoba for a total of $13.6 million.
There is still a big win waiting to be claimed in Saskatchewan. The winning ticket for the $5-million top prize in the Aug. 31 Lotto 6-49 was sold in Saskatoon.
Those numbers are: 8, 10, 17, 36, 39 and 44.
The winner has until one year from the date of the draw to claim their prize.
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