Peter Ashdown has been a member of the North Melbourne Football Club for over 20 years, so when his friends booked him into a golfing trip earlier this year for the weekend of August 29 he immediately looked at the AFL fixture to see which game he'd be missing.

Peter, who resides in Summerhill in the north of Tasmania, still makes an effort to get to as many Melbourne games as possible, because as he describes it “it’s just as quick to get to Melbourne as it is to drive two hours south to Hobart.”

On Saturday afternoon, Peter was 11 holes through the famous Yarrawonga golf course when his phone rang. What came next would make anyone’s weekend.

Peter was informed that he was the winner of a brand new Mazda 3, valued at over $35,000, through a North Melbourne raffle.

“The club called me a couple of weeks ago and invited me to the game for the draw, but unfortunately I was already locked in to this golfing trip. Although we didn’t win on Saturday, it’s fair to say it was a pretty exciting weekend.

“I began supporting the club in the early 70’s and have been a member since just before we won the flag in 1996. It’s been a great ride and hopefully we can pinch another flag or two in the next little while.”

While Peter was enjoying the sun on the golf course, another nine finalists gathered at Etihad Stadium for the draw on the stadium’s concourse.

The 10 finalists for the major prize were all invited to the game and presented with a Mazda key to try their luck with and open the car.

Fortunately for Peter, the North Melbourne staff member who was acting on his behalf correctly pulled out the winning key and promptly unlocked his brand new car.

“I really couldn’t believe it there for a minute; I’m just so thankful. I can’t wait to hopefully get up to Melbourne over the next few weeks and watch the boys in the Final at the MCG; last year was just so exciting.”