There’s a procedural change coming for the drawings in our Pick 3 and Pick 4 games, and from a player perspective, you’ll notice a couple updates.
The drawing results in the games will be unique to Iowa for the first time since the games were introduced here in our state. And the drawing times also will change slightly, as will the deadlines by which you’ll need to buy tickets for those drawings.
Beginning on Wednesday, April 16, Iowa-specific drawings will be held in both games. That’s a change from current procedures. Since Pick 3 was introduced in Iowa in 1998 and Pick 4 was added here in 2003, the Iowa Lottery has shared drawing results in those games with the Illinois Lottery.
But over time, both states have added different features to our individual games and we’ve heard from players wondering why we share drawing results but have separate options in each state. We think it makes sense to begin holding separate drawings to help avoid player confusion.
Pick 3 and Pick 4 both have drawings twice a day here in Iowa, with a midday drawing currently at 12:40 p.m. and an evening drawing about 9:20 p.m.
Starting April 16, the midday drawing in each game will be held at 12:50 p.m., with the sales cut-off time for that drawing at noon. The evening drawing in both games will be at 8:50 p.m., with the sales cut-off time for that drawing at 8 p.m.
For those who aren’t familiar with Pick 3 and Pick 4, they’re numbers games with a long history along the East Coast. But they’re also offered by numerous other lotteries across the country, including the Iowa Lottery. Pick 3 players choose combinations of three numbers from 0 to 9 while Pick 4 players choose combinations of four numbers from 0 to 9. The prize you could win depends on the type of play you make.
For example, you can choose the option of winning a prize only if your numbers match the winning numbers in the exact order they come up in the drawing. That’s called a straight play. Or, you can choose the option of winning a prize if your numbers match the winning numbers in any order. That’s called a box play. There are other options in the games as well.
Prizes in Pick 3 and Pick 4 are smaller than those in big-jackpot games like Powerball and Mega Millions®, but the odds of winning also are significantly better.
Iowa’s Pick 3 game features a top prize of $3,000, with odds of just 1 in 1,000 of winning it. Plays in Pick 3 range in cost from 50 cents to $5. Iowa’s Pick 4 game features a top prize of $30,000, with odds of 1:10,000 of winning it. Plays in Pick 4 also range cost 50 cents up to $5.
Our drawing results generally are posted to the website within 20 minutes following the drawings.
Mary
Posted by: Mary Neubauer | April 28, 2014 at 11:10 AM
How soon are the results posted to the website
Posted by: klene | April 26, 2014 at 01:21 AM
Hi, Marge. Great question. There currently are no plans to televise the drawings. The only drawings that are televised here in Iowa are those in the Powerball and Mega Millions games.
Posted by: Mary Neubauer | April 24, 2014 at 02:25 PM
We have always watched the Illinois drawing live via WGN. Are there any plans to televise the Iowa lottery. The live draw adds credibility to the process.
Posted by: Marge Bryson | April 24, 2014 at 12:54 PM
Great question. Our current play slips do only have those two options. We are updating the play slips to include the additional options, so those will be in the field in the coming weeks. In the meantime, if you want to play at those higher amounts, you can tell the clerk that verbally in the store.
Posted by: Mary Neubauer | April 09, 2014 at 08:26 AM