SuperLotto jackpot is the largest in city’s history
Todd Bablinskas didn’t use his kids’ birthdates; he didn’t use his wedding date, or his social security number, or even his usual lucky numbers.
The 47-year old winner of the $9 million SuperLotto jackpot says the numbers, with one-in-41-million odds of winning, were chosen completely at random.
“It was a complete batch of lightning quick-pick numbers,” said Bablinskas, calm for having just won a fortune.
A Morgan Hill resident for 10 years, Bablinskas works as a regional salesman for a LCD display company. He said he has no intention of quitting his job, explaining that even after finding out about his win last Thursday, he still went in to work the next day.
“Everybody’s in disbelief,” Bablinskas said. “But we’re level-headed people, and there’s nothing that I want to buy except a house for my wife.”
Bablinskas says he plays the lottery regularly, buying one ticket for each of the twice weekly SuperLotto drawings. He said his family has decided to take the money in one large chunk, giving them $5.3 million immediately rather than having the money doled out over 26 annual payments.
“I’m 47, and you never know how long you’re going to live,” Bablinskas said. “We’re going to invest the money.”
Bablinskas lives in Morgan Hill with his wife, Lisa and their 18-year-old son, Eric. The couple has two other children, 24-year-old Krystin and 21-year-old Dan, both of whom are living away from home, attending college.
Bablinskas notified state lottery officials late Thursday afternoon, according to California State Lottery spokesperson Cathy Johnston.
“He sounded a little like he was still in shock,” Johnston said. “I think he was still grasping that he had won.”
Paul’s Quick Stop, at the corner of Main and Hale avenues, sold Bablinskas the winning ticket with the lucky numbers 22, 15, 23, 40 and 42.
The owner of Paul’s Quick Stop, Surinder Singh, learned he had sold the winner Thursday morning after receiving a call from the lottery district manager in Hayward. Singh said he couldn’t be more ecstatic to have a jackpot made in his store. For selling the ticket, Singh will receive 0.5 percent of the jackpot, or $45,000, from the California Lottery.
“It means a lot,” he said. “People will know we have a winner here.”
Lottery officials say they will put up a banner at Singh’s Morgan Hill store saying “Millionaire made here.”
Bablinskas newfound millions makes him the largest lottery winner in Morgan Hill history, according to Al Landeen, spokesman for the California State Lottery. Prior to Bablinskas, Mildred Wiedemer won a $7 million SuperLotto jackpot in 2006 after purchasing a lottery ticket at Morgan Hill’s Simple Beverages & Cigar liquor store on Monterey Road and East Third Street, owned by John JH Kim.
