Hot Lotto® Game Being Redesigned

An updated version of the Hot Lotto game will debut next month along with a special promotion tied to the game that will offer prizes of free gas.

Starting May 12, Hot Lotto’s jackpot will be a cash-only prize with withholding taxes paid. That means that if the advertised jackpot is $2 million, the winner will receive a one-time, lump-sum payment for that full amount.

The revamped game will be introduced with a special promotion this spring and summer offering 85 prizes of free gas. The “3X the Sizzle” promotion will mean players can purchase three Hot Lotto plays with the Sizzler for $5 (a regular $6 value) and have the chance to enter a drawing for up to $500 in free gas.

Taxes are something we hear about a lot when it comes to lottery prizes. And we’ve also heard players say they’d like to see cash jackpots with the withholding taxes paid. We’re excited to be offering that very feature when we re-launch Hot Lotto next month.

The numbers available to play in Hot Lotto will change with the new version of the game. Players will choose five balls from a pool of 47 (currently 39) and another number, called the Hot Ball®, from a separate pool of 19 (unchanged). The minimum Hot Lotto jackpot will be $1 million cash with state and federal withholding taxes paid, and will grow until someone wins it. Hot Lotto jackpot winners currently can choose to receive the prize in annuitized payments over 25 years or as a one-time cash payment, with state and federal withholding applied in either instance.

Hot Lotto plays will still cost $1, and the Sizzler option, which triples non-jackpot prizes, will still cost an extra $1 per play. And you’ll still be able to choose your own numbers or let the computer randomly select them.

In addition to the change in the jackpot, several other prize levels in the game also are increasing. The eight non-jackpot prize levels in the redesigned game will range from $2 (unchanged) for matching the Hot Ball alone, up to $30,000 (currently $10,000) for matching the first five numbers but missing the Hot Ball. All nonjackpot prizes will still triple with the Sizzler option, meaning a player would win $90,000 for matching the first five numbers with the Sizzler option added.
 
And here are the details about the upcoming promotion: When you purchase a 3X the Sizzle ticket, the lottery terminal will automatically generate a trailing ticket containing a special code that you can enter on the lottery website for a chance to win ethanol promotional checks for free fuel from the Iowa Corn Growers Association.

You can purchase 3X the Sizzle tickets from May 12 through July 13, and can enter the promotion until noon on July 23 at www.ialottery.com.

We’ll select 85 winners of ethanol checks in a drawing July 25. Fifty players will each win $100 in ethanol checks for free gas; 25 each will win $250 in checks; and 10 each will win $500 in checks.
One more detail: The number of Hot Lotto drawings that you can purchase plays for in advance will decrease as we move toward the start of the revamped game. It will go back to the usual 10 drawings in advance once the redesign takes effect. We have to do that to make sure everyone has tickets with the right numbers available once the new game debuts.

Comments

[Mary Neubauer]

Hi, Joe. Thanks for commenting here on the blog. I will pass your comments along to the folks who plan our games so they are aware of your concerns

[Joe Tiernan]

This is just another gimick to raise more money for the lottery. Nothing is said in your article about how the additional numbers will make the chances of winning go up astromonically. The only thing I liked about HotLotto was, what seemed like, better odds for winning especially compared to Powerball or megamillions. What fun is playing a game where your ticket never has even one number. Why doesn't the lottery trim the ball number choices in half which would generate a lot more winners? You may not get the big jackpots but the majority of your players would rather see a lot of $5,000,000 winners than the occasional $200,000,000 winner.

[Mary Neubauer]

Hi, Amanda. Thank you for commenting here on the blog. I will pass your comments along to the folks planning our games so they are aware of your concerns.

[Mary Neubauer]

Yes, they will! We're glad to be adding that in to make the process easier.

[Mark Haigh]

I'll be waiting for this one. Big cash and winnings, here we come!

You just stay there and be patient until I have you.