Everyone who buys a takarakuji ticket dreams of winning big, but what is it like to actually hit the jackpot? The Japan Times spoke with a 36-year-old who won a 100 million yen jackpot seven years ago, and heard how his win brought him a fortune -- and some hard lessons in life as well.

It was the winter of 1986 when Satoshi Nagashima (not his real name) bought his first takarakuji ticket. One day, Nagashima, who was then a 19-year-old cram-school student, was asked by his parents to buy some tickets for them on his way to school in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward. He decided to get a few for himself, too.

One of the 20 lottery tickets he bought that day had the same six-digit number as the 50 million yen jackpot winner. Nagashima's heart leapt -- but then he noticed his ticket's two-digit group number did not match up. Still, he walked away with a prize of 100,000 yen. Talk about beginner's luck.