$50M Lotto Max winner says he had a vision of winning numbers

Randall Rush of Lamont, Alberta collects his $50 million Lotto Max jackpot on Friday, Feb. 6, 2015.

Six years ago Randall Rush was at a friend's house watching a football game when a series of numbers flashed into his head.

His friend told Rush to write down the numbers, and when he took a look, he thought they would make for good lottery picks. But the 48-year-old was skeptical -- he never played the lottery.

"He goes: ‘If you didn’t play and these numbers come up, how would you feel?’" said Rush.

Ever since that fateful day, the resident of Lamont, Alta., has picked the same numbers when purchasing lottery tickets once a week.

Last weekend, it finally paid off. Rush found out he was the winner of the $50-million Lotto Max prize.

"Seriously this sounds fabricated, this sounds hokey, but it is the honest-to-God truth," he said at a press conference on Friday, where he was awarded his winnings.

"It was a shock I won so much ... but at the same time I was expecting it," he added.

Rush, who worked as a sales representative for Hertz Equipment Rental, said in the last two years he had a growing premonition that he was going to win.

"Again, it sounds hokey but for the last two years I didn't think I was going to win -- I knew I was going to win."

The Vancouver native was so confident that he started planning for his eventual jackpot. But Rush wasn't planning to buy a fancy home or a fleet of flashy cars.

He says that winning the lottery comes with a burden of responsibility.

"To whom much is given, much is required," he said.

Rush has planned to dedicate his life to a new charitable organization that will focus on feeding hungry and homeless children across the world.

While he says he will look after a close circle of friends and purchase a few toys, including a 1965 Corvette for the self-described "car nut," he says the "vast majority" of his winnings will be placed in a trust. The interest generated from the account will be funnelled into his charity.

"This money can go a long way in foreign countries, so if I could make someone's life a little happier -- that would be great," he said.

Besides his philanthropic goals, Rush says it is about time he paid off a long-overdue parking ticket that he received in Moncton, N.B.

"I've been putting that off forever and ever -- it is on the front of my fridge -- and I'm like, 'Ugh, next paycheck, ugh next paycheck.' And now I have no excuses," he said.

"I just hope they don't come looking for me now," he said with a laugh.

Rush also plans to look after his cat Conway Kitty, named after the country music star Conway Twitty. It was on Rush's trip to the grocery store for cat food last weekend, when he found out he had won the $50-million prize.

"He was sleeping, and he gave me the one eye, 'Oh I disturbed your royal snooze, eh?'" Rush said.

"He's a big fan of pate, so I think we'll stick to that program," he added.