I thought the lottery was a waste of time – but I won jackpot with my first ever ticket after my friend twisted my arm

A MAN who refused to buy a lottery ticket his whole life finally took the plunge and has hit the jackpot big-time.

Earlier this month, Danny Johnson was coaxed into buying his first Powerball ticket by a friend - convincing him to drop his "it's a waste of time" mantra.

It was a gamble that paid off for the Virginia man, guessing all but one number and bringing home £124,000.

According to Newsflash, he told Virginia Lottery officials: "I looked at the winning numbers and said, 'Hey I've got a few of those!'"

"I didn't know how much I'd won because I never play."

Mr Johnson's lucky guess was quite the feat, overall odds of winning any Powerball prize are one in 25.

The odds of matching all six numbers to win the jackpot are one in roughly 292 million.

Virginia Lottery said: Danny Johnson is on of those people who tells people they're wasting their time playing lottery games."

"He may not be saying that anymore.

"Normally, it wins $50,000, however, he spent an extra dollar for Power Play, which tripled the prize to $150,000."

The winning numbers in the draw were 28-45-53-56-69, and the Powerball number was 20.

Mr Johnson said it would only be fair to treat his mate.

He said: " I have no immediate plans for my winnings."

"But I may have a surprise coming for the friend who hounded me into buying the ticket."

Earlier this year, British couple Joe and Jess Thwaite became the UK's biggest ever National Lottery winners.

Another lottery winner kept her fortunes secret from her husband for eight years,

One man was dubbed 'the UK's most eligible bachelor' after winning big.