Lotto Max: $70 million ticket sold in Ontario — here are the winning numbers

There’s one winning ticket in the Feb. 20 Lotto Max draw, meaning someone is holding on to a $70 million prize.

According to the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG), the ticket was sold in Kawartha Lakes, Ont.

“So far, this $70 million prize is the largest to date in the Kawartha Lakes area,” said Tony Bitonti, media representative at OLG in a statement to Yahoo News Canada.

The winning numbers from the Feb. 20 draw are 1, 4, 23, 24, 31, 40, 48, and players must match all seven numbers to win the $70 million grand prize.

OLG is now urging players to double-check their tickets and claim their winnings before the one-year deadline. That means it's time to scour your pockets, glove compartments, and backpacks to see if you’re holding onto the winning ticket.

The $70 million is the maximum the Lotto Max jackpot can grow to, after starting at $10 million.

“We do advise that the ticket holder checks their ticket right away, and if it is the winning $70 million ticket to keep it in a safe place until you come to claim it,” said Bitonti.

“While you have one year from the draw date to claim the money, we hope that the ticket holder contacts OLG as soon as possible to start the prize claim process in order to avoid any possibility of the ticket getting lost."

Ticket holders can claim their prizes online or call OLG at 1-800-387-0098.

Just last month, another Lotto Max $70 million ticket was sold in Alberta and later claimed by Brian Hoover, a man from northern Alberta.

In Ontario specifically, Lotto Max players have won over $7.9 billion since 2009, including 100 jackpot wins and 826 Maxmillions prizes across the province. The odds of becoming a millionaire with Lotto Max are 1 in 33,294,800.

The next biggest lottery prize that was won in the Kawartha Lakes area was a $21.5 million Lotto 6/49 prize from 2022, claimed by a winner in Lindsay, Ont.

Lotto Max is a nationwide game available to Canadians across all provinces and territories. It costs $5 per play with draws taking place every Tuesday and Friday. Players can select seven numbers from a field of 1 to 50 or opt for a quick pick where the system generates randomized numbers. The objective is to match as many numbers as possible during the bi-weekly draws for your chance at becoming a winner.

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The next Lotto Max jackpot is estimated at $18 million for the Friday, Feb. 23 draw. Players can purchase tickets at authorized OLG retailers or buy online at OLG.ca until 10:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 23 for the draw that evening.

Tools to stop gambling

If you're looking to take a break from gambling, self-exclusion programs can be effective tools. See here for resources that are available across Canada.