TALK ABOUT LUCKY. A stunned Sydney man who was celebrating an Australian lottery windfall could not believe it when he won again less than a week later.

The unidentified man, in his 40s and from the suburb of Bondi, picked up Aus$1,020,487 (€643,417) on Monday last week and then scooped another Aus$1,457,834 (€919,164) on Saturday.

“I just thought this is too good to be true,” he told NSW Lotteries after being informed of his good fortune.

The chances of winning twice in such a short period of time must be non-existent. I wish I had some advice to others on how to win the lottery, but I don’t.

Asked what he would do with the cash, he said: “I’m not going to be stupid with it.”

He plans to invest in some Sydney real estate, buy a new car and “a holiday to Honolulu goes without saying”.

Lottery organisers could not estimate the likelihood of winning twice in a week, but the odds of winning once are one in 1.845 million.

“We don’t know of anyone else who has won twice in a week,” NSW Lotteries spokesman Matt Hart told AFP.

We have had people win twice in their lifetime, but not twice in a week. It is very unusual and unique.

Lotteries are hugely popular in Australia, with various government-owned and private-sector operators.

The biggest recent winner was a man from Victoria state who woke up Aus$55 million (almost €35 million) richer in January.

- © AFP, 2018