There’s a Bill in Picton sitting on a six-figure secret

Wednesday, 24 June 2026

Somewhere in Picton, a man named Bill is trying to act normal.

The lifelong boatie and former Coastguard member recently learned he had won the Coastguard Lottery’s top prize, but says he hasn’t told anyone yet — not even family.

Bill, who did not want his surname published, won the lottery’s grand prize: a Marco 600 Striker Elite boat package valued at $130,000, or a cash alternative worth $115,000.

Coastguard New Zealand confirmed to the Marlborough Express that Bill had opted to take the cash.

The Picton man said he initially thought the phone call informing him of the win was a prank.

“At first I thought a friend was playing a joke on me,” he said.

After hanging up, he spent some time thinking about the call before contacting Coastguard again to make sure the win was genuine.

Even now, the reality of the six-figure windfall was still sinking in.

“I haven't told anyone yet. I'll keep it quiet for now and maybe drop it into conversation sometime to surprise the family.”

Bill said he had been a boatie since childhood.

“My father always had a boat, and over the years I’ve built three yachts myself and sailed extensively around New Zealand and the South Pacific.”

He was also a Coastguard member for many years before his membership lapsed when he no longer owned a boat.

Despite that, he had continued supporting the organisation through the Coastguard Lottery.

While many winners might have jumped at the chance to take home a new boat, Bill said he was still deciding how to spend the cash.

“I’ll let it all sink in first, but maybe I’ll put some towards upgrading the house, and possibly another small boat.”

Coastguard said in its lottery the second and third prizes were automatically awarded to the ticket holders on either side of the grand prize winner. This year, those winners were from Whangārei and Kumara and each received a Bay of Islands big-game fishing holiday or a $7000 cash alternative.