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An IT project manager is celebrating after winning tens of thousands of pounds worth of prizes this year.
Rikki Tronson, of Borough Green, near Sevenoaks, had previously won a Range Rover Sport car before he scooped a luxury watch this year, and has now won a new Tesla and £20,000 in cash - all in the same online competition.
Having been surprised with a £6,700 Breitling watch two months ago, the last person Mr Tronson expected to see when he answered the door was presenter Christian Williams of BOTB (Best of the Best PLC) with his latest success coming on October 14.
He has now won all three competitions BOTB run, having first won the Range Rover in 2014.
Mr Tronson said: “I’m just shocked. I was upstairs getting ready for work and heard the doorbell go.
“I really have won the hat-trick, haven’t I?”
The new family-friendly Tesla Model Y Mr Tronson has won is so new orders have only just opened and so, on the day of his winners' announcement, he was surprised with the sportier Tesla 3 Model, which he wasted no time getting into, to check out the features for himself.
"I really have won the hat-trick, haven't I..?"
But the tech-obsessed man wasn’t the only family member who was going to be ecstatic about the latest win.
Mr Tronson said: “My son is going to be so excited.
"He loves Teslas and points them out every time we see them on the road.
“I love technology and I actually design computer software myself, so seeing things like the built-in computer is incredible - the whole family is going to love it and I can’t wait until it arrives.”
As he is the first to win all three BOTB competitions, this win brings his collective prize value to more than £130,000.
The company, listed on the stock market, was founded by William Hindmarch in 1999 and has given away more than £44m-worth of cars so far.
It has three weekly competitions - the Dream Car Competition, Midweek Car Competition and a Luxury Lifestyle Competition.
“I didn’t expect to win again. I only played this last week, and had a few gos,” he added.
“I just can’t believe I've won again!”
He also shared his advice with fellow players, saying his wins have largely been down to persistence, hope and a lot of luck.
BOTB’s Mr Williams, who surprises winners every week, was thrilled to give Mr Tronson the good news.
He said: “We’re in our 22nd year so we were bound to reach a point where we had people who have won multiple prizes, and it’s so exciting to see Rikki make the hat-trick!
“I couldn’t be happier to be surprising him for a whopping third time.”
BOTB first opened at Heathrow Airport in 1999, with Daveeda Shaheen scooping the first prize.
It clocked its 500th winner in 2019 and many winners continue to play, convinced they have the Midas touch.
The company uses former professional footballers to judge the competition independently each week.
For the Dream Car and Midweek Car Competition, competitors add tickets to their basket for the prizes they'd like to win, play "Spot the Ball" and then proceed to check-out, according to BOTB's website.
At the end of the Dream Car and Midweek Car Competitions, the same "Spot the Ball" picture they used to choose their coordinates is shown to a judging panel of professional sporting experts.
In the presence of an independent lawyer they mark where they think, in their professional opinion, the centre of the ball should be. The winner is simply the person who is closest to the judged position.
They will receive the prize corresponding to their winning ticket.
There is a limit of 75 tickets per customer per competition.
Dream Car and Midweek Car Competition tickets range from 45p to £4.80, depending on the type of car.
Lifestyle Competition tickets start from 25p and the competition is based around answers to skilled multiple choice questions.
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