The man, who didn't want to be identified, is aged in his 20s and is still in shock after winning the top prize.

He said he couldn't stop shaking after he realised he had won $1000-a-week for the next 10 years with the instant scratchie.

"Oh my god! I was going to have a heart attack," he told Lott officials after the win was confirmed.

"I couldn't stop shaking ... it's pretty surreal.

"I was close to driving five hours to Sydney to claim the prize in person."

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He said the "life-changing" amount was "wonderful" and was going to go towards a house deposit.

"I'll be accruing the prize weekly to eventually put down a house deposit for my first family home!" the man said.

"We've wanted to buy a property for so long now, and this has really brought it forward!"

The man said when he scratched the ticket he had to check it a couple of times, before running to his sister for a second set of eyes.

"I thought to myself, 'wait, wait, hang on! Is this right?', he said.

The man plans to celebrate the windfall on the weekend after telling his parents and siblings and a couple of friends.

He bought the winning $10 Live the Life Scratch-Its ticket from the CTC South Tamworth tobacconist and gift shop in Southgate Shopping Centre.

It's the first time the shop has sold a top prize ticket since it started offering lotto and scratchies, CTC South Tamworth manager Stephen Briggs said.

"We only started lotteries at our outlet a couple of years ago, and we're so glad we did because it feels amazing to give back to the community when we sell a major prize," he said.

He said the man was a "regular customer" and he and staff were over the moon about the win.

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