Just about every day, someone takes home the top prize in one of our scratch games or pull-tab games. And that’s where some confusion has apparently come in. Some people have thought that if someone wins the top prize in one of those games, there aren’t any other top prizes left!
But when we release scratch games and pull-tab games they always have multiple top prizes. It could be five, 15 or even more than 90, as is the case with our popular “Crossword” game.
Let’s take our Game Book as an example. We had our first top prize winner of $100,000 in that game in January. A couple different people have commented on Facebook that if she’s already won the top prize, then why play the game? Well, in fact, that game has a total of six top prizes of $100,000, so five are still up for grabs!
When the last top prize IS claimed in one of our scratch or pull-tab games, we pull that game from the market. An automatic notification goes out and the pick-ups begin right away. We try to err on the side of our players as much as possible!
If you’re ever curious about how many remaining prizes there are in our games, that list is always available on our website. The remaining prizes list is updated Monday-Friday, first thing in the morning. So check it out and maybe that will help you to determine which game you play next!
All eligible tickets for the Iowa Lottery VIP Club's Points for Prizes program are assigned point values within a range. The values of the points do not get revealed until they are entered into the Points for Prizes program. This is done for security purposes to prevent people from knowing how many points a ticket is worth until they enter it online and giving the players some extra excitement when they take part in the program.
Have fun playing!
Posted by: Mary Neubauer | February 25, 2013 at 10:37 AM
Why is it when I entered non-winning Games Books for "Play It Again" that the first one was worth 1,000 points then the second one only worth 500 points?
Posted by: Laura | February 25, 2013 at 09:17 AM
Hi, Pam! Thank you for commenting on the blog! You made us smile because we hear so many times from people who live in other parts of the state who complain that it's only "those people in Des Moines" who ever win. In reality, prizes in our games are determined by random chance, pure and simple. It is true that wins do tend to follow population centers, and that makes sense as well. With more people living in a particular area, there will be more people playing there, simply because of the population density. And with more people playing, more tickets will be sold, which will produce more winners.
Posted by: Mary Neubauer | February 25, 2013 at 08:26 AM
If you live in the Des Moines area you don't see as may big prizes.. Why is that...
Posted by: Pam Konchalski | February 24, 2013 at 06:44 PM
Hi, Lo Ho! Great question about the lottery's "Game Book." As you will see on the "eligible games" list in your VIP Club account, the Game Book can certainly be entered for Points For Prizes. The 10-digit number you'll need is on page 6 of the booklet, under the latex on the "$100,000 Explosion" game. The 12-digit number is on the back of the booklet. We actually produced a video about tips for playing the Game Book. If you have other questions, please check that out here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZuFc9avWHI. Thanks!
Posted by: Mary Neubauer | February 11, 2013 at 08:38 AM