ialottery blog

Dear Lottery: I Really Don’t Like Your …

A woman reached out to us this month to share that she really doesn’t like our promotions that offer ticket prize packages to events like concerts and sports events. She said she plays the lottery for the chance to win MONEY, and nothing else.

And we get it. You’ve often heard us say through the years that cash is king. So, we’ll definitely keep offering games and promotions that offer cash prizes.

But we also know that variety is the spice of life. And for that reason, we mix in games and promotions that offer other types of prizes. We’ve given away cars, trucks, motorcycles, snowmobiles and ATVs, ticket packages for concerts and sports events, and luxury items including home entertainment systems and vacations to warm-weather destinations.

Our current promotions are a perfect example of that: The Countdown to Carver™ promotion offers ticket prize packages to Iowa women’s and men’s basketball games and men’s wrestling meets, while the Million Dollar Holiday promotion offers a total of $1 million in cash prizes.

We’ll keep changing things up, knowing that different people have different tastes. If you don’t see something you like at the moment, just know we switch out our line-ups just about every month!

Heartwarming Winner Story Alert!

This Iowa woman’s story about winning the lottery absolutely just jumps off the page.

Je Rita Whitman of Anamosa claimed a $30,000 top prize this week in our “$30,000 Crossword” scratch game. She said she bought what ended up being her winning ticket as she was thinking about her mom, who loved Crossword tickets. She says they used to scratch tickets together and laugh about winning one day.

And it turns out they DID!

Je Rita says that her mom, Sonja Warren, won a $30,000 prize on a Crossword ticket in 2015. And as the one-year anniversary of her mom’s passing approached, Je Rita bought a ticket of her own. She says she’s convinced her mom is up there pulling strings for her!

Je Rita says she bought her ticket at a convenience store on her way to work at University of Iowa Hospitals in Iowa City. She said she didn’t scratch her ticket until later and thought initially that she’d won $100. Then she scanned it with the lottery’s mobile app and realized her prize was much larger.

Je Rita says it’s got to be unique to have two lottery winners of $30,000 in the same family.

She and her husband, Bradley, have a plan for the winnings. Je Rita says they’ve been thinking about a cabin so they can go fishing on a lake.

Congratulations, Je Rita. Thank you for lifting everyone’s spirits on a chilly day with your heartwarming story!

The Name Says It: ‘Million Dollar Holiday’ Will Give Away Total Of $1 Million In Prizes

When that $1 million Mega Millions® prize in central Iowa expired this fall without being claimed, we said we’d give away the money in the Iowa Lottery’s holiday promotion. Now it’s time to put that into action.

The lottery’s Million Dollar Holiday promotion opened for entries this morning. Players can enter with nonwinning tickets in the seven holiday-themed scratch games available this year in Iowa.

During the promotion’s drawings from mid-November through early January, the Iowa Lottery will give away 89 cash prizes ranging from $1,000 up to the grand prize of $500,000. The total in prizes for the promotion? You guessed it: $1 million. By splitting the total up, we’re giving more players the chance to share in the winnings.

We’re applying the “max bet” concept in the promotion, meaning that the size of the prize you could win increases along with the purchase price of the scratch ticket you’ve entered.

The promotion runs through early January, with its final drawing date on Jan. 10. You can enter tickets on the lottery website or by using our mobile app.

In the promotion’s three initial rounds of drawings, a total of 85 prizes will be awarded. Twenty-five winners of $1,000 will be selected from among the $2 and $3 entries; 30 winners of $2,500 from among the $5 entries; and 30 winners of $10,000 from among the $10 and $20 entries.

The initial drawings will be held on Nov. 16, Dec. 14 and Jan 10. The promotion’s grand-prize drawing also will be held on Jan. 10. In that final drawing, we’ll go out with a bang, awarding a prize of $50,000, two prizes of $100,000 and the promotion’s grand prize of $500,000.

Entries won’t carry over from one drawing to the next, except for the grand-prize drawing. All entries submitted over the course of the promotion that are not selected as a winner in one of the initial drawings will automatically be eligible for the grand-prize drawing.

Wow, Today’s Pick 4 Results! The Popularity of ‘Quads’ In Action

Did you SEE the results in today’s midday Pick 4 drawing? Holy buckets, there were big winners all across the state! It shows the popularity of “quads” in the game.

I’ve blogged before about plays made up of identical numbers are in our Pick 3 and Pick 4 games. I’m talking about combinations like 2-2-2 in Pick 3 and 5-5-5-5 in Pick 4. They’re called “trips” in Pick 3 and “quads” in Pick 4, and they’ve always been some of the most popular plays purchased in those games. When those winning numbers are selected in a drawing, the results can be eye-catching.

The latest example of that happened earlier today! The winning numbers in today’s midday Pick 4 drawing were 7-7-7-7, and Iowa Lottery players won 19 prizes ranging from $6,000 up to $120,000. (The bigger amounts were won by players who bought multiple plays with identical numbers, all on one ticket.)

Here are the locations of the big winners in today’s midday Pick 4 drawing:

            $120,000 prize
            Kwik Star, 1724 Central Ave. in Estherville

            $30,000 prize
            Jeff’s Market, 101 E. Fourth St. in Wilton

            2 prizes of $18,000
            Casey’s, 2711 S. 24th St. in Council Bluffs (both prizes won at same store)

            $12,000 prize
            Kum & Go, 3104 University Ave. in Des Moines

            14 prizes of $6,000 (listed alphabetically by city)
            Casey’s, 613 W. U.S. Highway 30 in Carroll
            Kwik Star, 4515 Coneflower Pkwy. in Cedar Falls
            Mart Stop, 3527 Spring St. in Davenport
            QC Mart, 3545 Eastern Ave. in Davenport
            Hy-Vee, 400 S. Locust St. in Dubuque
            Kwik Star, 1800 Blairs Ferry Road NE in Hiawatha
            Laurens Food Pride, 410 W. Main St. in Laurens
            Casey’s, 1413 N. Franklin St. in Manchester
            Yesway, 637 12th St. NE in Mason City
            Super Mart, 701 S. Frederick Ave. in Oelwein
            BP Fuel, 127 Jefferson St. in Waterloo (two prizes of $6,000 won there)
            Neighborhood Mart, 2100 Lafayette St. in Waterloo
            Hy-Vee, 1990 Grand Ave. in West Des Moines

All prizes of more than $600 must be claimed directly from the Iowa Lottery. The Pick 4 prizes listed here can be claimed at any lottery office.

Congratulations to our Pick 4 winners who were part of this unusual day!

Hawkeye Gold: This Time, The Iowa-Themed Scratch Game & Promotion Focus On Basketball & Wrestling

For the second time this year, the Iowa Lottery and Hawkeye Sports Properties have teamed up for a Hawkeye™-themed scratch game and promotion, with the focus now on basketball and wrestling.

The exclusive “Hawkeye Gold” scratch game debuted Oct. 10, and the Countdown to Carver™ promotion built around the game has opened for entries today. The promotion offers ticket prize packages for coveted seats this season at ALL Iowa men’s and women’s home basketball games and Iowa men’s home wrestling meets. The promo also will give away ticket prize packages to the Hawkeye men’s and women’s basketball doubleheader Dec. 16 at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.

Tickets in the $5 Hawkeye Gold scratch game have a bright gold background and feature a large image on the front of the distinctive Iowa Tigerhawk™ logo. As with this year’s initial Iowa-themed scratch game, Hawkeye Gold tickets offer players the chance to win cash prizes ranging from $5 up to $50,000.

Iowa Lottery players who don’t win an instant prize on their Hawkeye Gold scratch ticket can enter it into the Countdown to Carver promotion for a chance to win ticket prize packages for upcoming Iowa sports events, including the sold-out season of the Hawkeye women’s basketball team.

As of today, a total of 112 ticket prize packages will be given away in the promotion. More may be added as the full-season schedule for Iowa men’s wrestling becomes available!

Some of the prize packages will be for seats in the all-new, private Iowa Lottery Terrace in Carver-Hawkeye Arena™ with food, water and soda provided. Ohers will be for general tickets in the arena. Still others will be for the Iowa basketball doubleheader in Des Moines, with seats in a VIP suite at Wells Fargo Arena with food, water and soda provided.

Players will select the ticket prize package and event of their choice at the time they make an entry in the promotion.

The promotion’s entry period opened this morning and continues through 9:59 a.m. on Feb. 5, 2024. There will be five drawing dates in the promotion to award ticket prize packages for events throughout the upcoming college basketball and wrestling seasons.

To enter the promotion, players must join or already be members of the Iowa Lottery’s free VIP Club. Players can visit the lottery’s website at ialottery.com to enter the promotion or scan an eligible ticket with the Iowa Lottery’s mobile app to enter. As you enter, please pay close attention to the entry deadlines involved. The events earlier in the season will be closed to promotion entries once the applicable deadline has passed.

Here is a list of the ticket prize packages that will be given away in the Countdown to Carver promotion:

Oct. 26 drawing date
12 ticket prize packages awarded
9 Iowa Women’s Basketball prize packages
2 VIP prize packages with 4 tickets each on the private Iowa Lottery Terrace for these women’s basketball games: Fairleigh Dickinson-Iowa on Nov. 6; Kansas St.-Iowa on Nov. 16; and Drake-Iowa on Nov. 19. Complimentary food, water and soda with waitstaff service will be provided at the seats. Each prize package includes a parking pass and branded merchandise.
1 prize package of 4 arena-seat tickets, $100 spending money and a parking pass for these Iowa women’s basketball games: Fairleigh Dickinson-Iowa on Nov. 6; Kansas St.-Iowa on Nov. 16; and Drake-Iowa on Nov. 19.
3 Iowa Men’s Basketball prize packages
1 prize package of 4 arena-seat tickets, $100 spending money and a parking pass for these Iowa men’s basketball games: N. Dakota-Iowa on Nov. 7; Alabama St.-Iowa on Nov. 10; and Arkansas St.-Iowa on Nov. 17.

Nov. 16 drawing date
28 ticket prize packages awarded
15 Iowa Women’s Basketball prize packages
2 VIP prize packages with 4 tickets each on the private Iowa Lottery Terrace for these women’s basketball games: Bowling Green-Iowa on Dec. 2; and Loyola-Chicago-Iowa on Dec. 21. Complimentary food, water and soda with waitstaff service will be provided at the seats. Each prize package includes a parking pass and branded merchandise.
1 prize package of 4 arena-seat tickets, $100 spending money and a parking pass for these Iowa women’s basketball games: Bowling Green-Iowa on Dec. 2; and Loyola-Chicago-Iowa on Dec. 21.
9 VIP prize packages with 2 tickets each in a VIP suite at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines for the Iowa basketball doubleheader on Dec. 16 with food, water and soda provided in the suite along with branded merchandise. The featured doubleheader games are Cleveland St.-Iowa for the women and Florida A&M-Iowa for the men. Prize-package winners will be able to enjoy both games.
12 Iowa Men’s Basketball prize packages
1 prize package of 4 arena-seat tickets, $100 spending money and a parking pass for these Iowa men’s basketball games: N. Florida-Iowa on Nov. 29; Michigan-Iowa on Dec. 10; and UMBC-Iowa on Dec. 20.
9 VIP prize packages with 2 tickets each in a VIP suite at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines for the Iowa basketball doubleheader on Dec. 16 with food, water and soda provided in the suite along with branded merchandise. The featured doubleheader games are Cleveland St.-Iowa for the women and Florida A&M-Iowa for the men. Prize-package winners will be able to enjoy both games.
1 Iowa Men’s Wrestling prize package
1 prize package of 4 arena-seat tickets, $100 spending money and a parking pass for the Columbia-Iowa men’s wrestling meets on Dec. 8.

Dec. 14 drawing date
17 ticket prize packages awarded
12 Iowa Women’s Basketball prize packages
2 VIP prize packages with 4 tickets each on the private Iowa Lottery Terrace for these women’s basketball games: Minnesota-Iowa on Dec. 30; Michigan St.-Iowa on Jan. 2; Indiana-Iowa on Jan. 13; and Wisconsin-Iowa on Jan. 16. Complimentary food, water and soda with waitstaff service will be provided at the seats. Each prize package includes a parking pass and branded merchandise.
1 prize package of 4 arena-seat tickets, $100 spending money and a parking pass for these Iowa women’s basketball games: Minnesota-Iowa on Dec. 30; Michigan St.-Iowa on Jan. 2; Indiana-Iowa on Jan. 13; and Wisconsin-Iowa on Jan. 16.
3 Iowa Men’s Basketball prize packages
1 prize package of 4 arena-seat tickets, $100 spending money and a parking pass for these Iowa men’s basketball games: N. Illinois-Iowa on Dec. 29; Rutgers-Iowa on Jan. 6; and Nebraska-Iowa on Jan. 12.
2 Iowa Men’s Wrestling prize packages
1 prize package of 4 arena-seat tickets, $100 spending money and a parking pass for these Iowa men’s wrestling meets: Minnesota-Iowa on Jan. 15 and Purdue-Iowa on Jan. 19.

Jan. 9, 2024, drawing date
30 ticket prize packages awarded
9 Iowa Women’s Basketball prize packages
2 VIP prize packages with 4 tickets each on the private Iowa Lottery Terrace for these women’s basketball games: Nebraska-Iowa on Jan. 27; Penn St.-Iowa on Feb. 8; and Michigan-Iowa on Feb. 15. Complimentary food, water and soda with waitstaff service will be provided at the seats. Each prize package includes a parking pass and branded merchandise.
1 prize package of 4 arena-seat tickets, $100 spending money and a parking pass for these Iowa women’s basketball games: Nebraska-Iowa on Jan. 27; Penn St.-Iowa on Feb. 8; and Michigan-Iowa on Feb. 15.
8 Iowa Men’s Basketball prize packages
4 VIP prize packages with 4 tickets each on the private Iowa Lottery Terrace for the Purdue-Iowa men’s basketball game on Jan. 20. Complimentary food, water and soda with waitstaff service will be provided at the seats. Each prize package includes a parking pass and branded merchandise.
1 prize package of 4 arena-seat tickets, $100 spending money and a parking pass for these Iowa men’s basketball games: Purdue-Iowa on Jan. 20; Maryland-Iowa on Jan. 24; Ohio St.-Iowa on Feb. 2; and Minnesota-Iowa on Feb. 11.
13 Iowa Men’s Wrestling prize packages
12 prize packages of 4 tickets each on the private Iowa Lottery Terrace for the Penn St.-Iowa meet on Feb. 9. Complimentary food, water and soda with waitstaff service will be provided at the seats. Each prize package includes a parking pass and branded merchandise.
1 prize package of 4 arena-seat tickets, $100 spending money and a parking pass for the Penn St.-Iowa meet on Feb. 9.

Feb. 6, 2024, drawing date
26 ticket prize packages awarded
6 Iowa Women’s Basketball prize packages
2 VIP prize packages with 4 tickets each on the private Iowa Lottery Terrace for these women’s basketball games: Illinois-Iowa on Feb. 25; and Ohio St.-Iowa on March 3. Complimentary food, water and soda with waitstaff service will be provided at the seats. Each prize package includes a parking pass and branded merchandise.
1 prize package of 4 arena-seat tickets, $100 spending money and a parking pass for these Iowa women’s basketball games: Illinois-Iowa on Feb. 25; and Ohio St.-Iowa on March 3.
7 Iowa Men’s Basketball prize packages
4 VIP prize packages with 4 tickets each on the private Iowa Lottery Terrace for the Wisconsin-Iowa men’s basketball game on Feb. 17. Complimentary food, water and soda with waitstaff service will be provided at the seats. Each prize package includes a parking pass and branded merchandise.
1 prize package of 4 arena-seat tickets, $100 spending money and a parking pass for these Iowa men’s basketball games: Wisconsin-Iowa on Feb. 17; Penn St.-Iowa on Feb. 27; and Illinois-Iowa on March 10.
13 Iowa Men’s Wrestling prize packages
12 prize packages of 4 tickets each on the private Iowa Lottery Terrace for the Wisconsin-Iowa meet on Feb. 18. Complimentary food, water and soda with waitstaff service will be provided at the seats. Each prize package includes a parking pass and branded merchandise.
1 prize package of 4 arena-seat tickets, $100 spending money and a parking pass for the Wisconsin-Iowa meet on Feb. 18.

Temp. Limit Starting On Powerball Drawings You Can Play In Advance

The number of Powerball® drawings you can buy tickets for in advance will be limited for the next three weeks here in Iowa as we gear up to add a popular new feature to the game.

The stepdown on advance plays in Powerball will begin tomorrow (Oct. 14). Please note that this is for Powerball only – Mega Millions® and our other popular lotto games are not impacted.

Players normally can buy tickets for up to 10 Powerball drawings in advance in Iowa. But during the stepdown period, the number of advance plays you can buy will continue to count down until you can only buy tickets for the next drawing.

The stepdown in Powerball will continue through the game’s drawing on Saturday, Nov. 4. After that, things will reset and you’ll be able to buy tickets again for up to 10 drawings in advance.

The stepdown ensures that as updates are made in a game, the same details apply to all tickets for a particular drawing so everyone has a fair and equal chance to win.

The update we’re about to make in Powerball is something players have been asking for, so we’re excited to debut it! It’s the Double Play® add-on feature in the game. Of the 48 lotteries that sell Powerball, 18 now offer Double Play. We’ll be No. 19.

You’ll be able to buy Powerball tickets with the Double Play option in Iowa beginning on Sunday, Nov. 5.

So what is Double Play? It’s an add-on option that gives you another chance to win with your Powerball numbers.

For an extra $1 per play, you can add Double Play to your ticket. (A Powerball play costs $2, and with the Double Play option added, your ticket would cost $3.) The numbers on your Powerball ticket are then eligible to win twice – once in the regular Powerball drawing, and once in a separate Double Play drawing with a top cash prize of $10 million.

It’s possible for you to win a prize in the regular Powerball drawing AND the Double Play drawing on the same night.

The Double Play drawing is held after every Powerball drawing on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays. When the option goes live in Iowa, you’ll see us report the winning numbers for Powerball and Double Play drawing on those nights.

Powerball Results: Iowa Players Won More Than 47,000 Prizes Last Night

Another giant jackpot run is now in the books.

Last night’s Powerball® jackpot was won with a ticket purchased in California, while a ticket in Iowa was just one number away from a share of the big prize.

The winning numbers in last night’s drawing were: 22-24-40-52-64 and Powerball 10. The Power Play® number was 2.

The jackpot ended up at $1.765 billion annuity, $774.1 million cash option. Strong sales pushed the final jackpot value even higher than the latest estimates before the drawing.

Last night’s jackpot was the second-largest ever offered in the Powerball game and the fourth lottery jackpot to top $1 billion in 2023, a level not previously seen in any year.

The Powerball jackpot returns to $20 million annuity, $9.1 million cash option, for the game’s next drawing on Saturday.

Total Prizes Won In Iowa

Iowa Lottery players won a total of 47,231 prizes in last night’s drawing. A ticket purchased in Clarion matched four of the first five numbers and the Powerball to win a $50,000 prize.

The $50,000-winning ticket was purchased at Casey’s, 222 Central Ave. W. in Clarion. That prize can be claimed at any Iowa Lottery office.

Iowa Sales For The Drawing

Iowa Lottery players bought nearly $2.7 million in Powerball tickets for last night’s drawing, including more than $1.9 million in tickets yesterday alone.

But the average Powerball purchase in Iowa for the drawing remained about $6, or about three plays per ticket. Lottery officials were pleased that Iowans had fun playing and didn’t go overboard.

How Population Factors In

In a game like Powerball, the odds of winning are the same for every ticket sold, no matter where you make your purchase. But simply because of their size, states with larger populations will have more people buying lottery tickets. And when more people buy tickets in a particular area, there will be more winnings there based on the sales volume.

Another way of putting that is that if 5 percent of lottery tickets are sold in a particular area, you expect to find about 5 percent of the prize winners there. Everyone has the same chance of winning, but there will be more winners in places where more tickets are sold.

Powerball is sold by 48 U.S. lotteries, including those in some of our nation’s biggest states. (California is No. 1 in terms of state population, followed by Texas, Florida and New York. All of those states sell Powerball.)

Iowa, with a population of about 3.1 million, is a fairly small state within the Powerball group, but the numbers show the state is doing well in terms of jackpot winners here.

Nine Iowa Lottery players have won Powerball jackpots through the years, including the largest lottery prize to date in Iowa, a $343.9 million jackpot won in 2018 by a Redfield woman.

This Month’s $2 Million Prize Still Unclaimed

The Iowa Lottery reminds its players to check their tickets for any prize they may have won, not just the jackpot. There are nine prize levels in Powerball, ranging from $4 for matching the Powerball alone up to the jackpot for matching all six winning numbers in a drawing.

Non-jackpot winnings can be significant, as demonstrated this past weekend in eastern Iowa. Someone who bought a ticket in Johnson County won a $2 million prize in last Saturday’s Powerball drawing. That prize hasn’t been claimed yet.

The winning ticket was purchased at Casey's, 403 Stephans St. in Tiffin. The ticket matched the first five numbers but missed the Powerball to initially win a $1 million prize in the Oct. 7 drawing. But whoever bought the ticket also added the Power Play® option to the purchase, which multiplies prizes at the Match 5 level to $2 million.

The $2 million prize needs to be claimed at Iowa Lottery headquarters in Clive. Lottery offices are open Monday through Friday, and appointments are strongly encouraged for those claims.

Powerball prizes won in Iowa must be claimed within 180 days of the drawing in which they were won.

With Powerball Sky High Again, 2023 Is The 1st Year To See 4 Jackpots Top $1 Billion

Powerball’s giant jackpot run continues, with its grand prize now the second-largest in history, behind only the game’s world-record prize of $2.04 billion won in November.

The jackpot for tomorrow night’s Powerball® drawing is now an estimated $1.725 billion annuity, $756.6 million cash option.

2023 marks the first time that four lottery jackpots have topped $1 billion in the same year. 2022 saw two jackpots won at that level and 2021 had just one.

Here are this year’s four giant jackpots so far:

• $1.725 billion – Powerball jackpot for tomorrow night’s drawing (Oct. 11).
• $1.602 billion – Mega Millions® jackpot won on Aug. 8.
• $1.08 billion – Powerball jackpot won on July 19.
• $1.348 billion – Mega Millions jackpot won on Jan. 13.

This time around, the Powerball jackpot has been growing for nearly three months. It was last won on July 19 with a ticket in California.

What’s With All The Huge Jackpots?

The current Powerball jackpot is the ninth U.S. lottery prize to top $1 billion. All have occurred since 2016.

The string of gigantic jackpots has some wondering about the reason behind them. Over time, lotteries in Powerball and Mega Millions have made adjustments to the games to continue to meet player expectations for big jackpots while delivering lots of other chances to win. The definition of a ‘big jackpot’ continues to evolve along with the games themselves.

$2 Million Prize Won Saturday In Iowa Still Unclaimed

The Iowa Lottery reminds its players to check their tickets for any prize they may have won, not just the jackpot. There are nine prize levels in Powerball, ranging from $4 for matching the Powerball alone up to the jackpot for matching all six winning numbers in a drawing.

Non-jackpot winnings can be significant, and that was demonstrated this past weekend in eastern Iowa. Someone who bought a ticket in Johnson County won a $2 million prize in Saturday’s drawing.

The $2 million-winning ticket was purchased at Casey's, 403 Stephans St. in Tiffin. The ticket matched the first five numbers but missed the Powerball to initially win a $1 million prize. But whoever bought the ticket also added the Power Play® option to the purchase, which multiplies prizes at the Match 5 level to $2 million.

The prize won in Tiffin must be claimed at Iowa Lottery headquarters in Clive. Lottery offices are open Monday through Friday, and appointments are strongly encouraged for those claims. To make an appointment or contact the lottery with questions, the winner or winners are welcome to call the lottery at 515-725-7900 or email to [email protected].

Powerball prizes won in Iowa must be claimed within 180 days of the drawing in which they were won.

The Latest Winning Numbers and ‘Coverage’ Estimate

The winning numbers in Powerball’s latest drawing last night were: 16-34-46-55-67 and Powerball 14. The Power Play number was 3.

By tracking sales, lottery officials can estimate how many of all the possible combinations in the game have been purchased for a particular drawing. It’s called coverage – how many of the combinations have been “covered.”

The coverage estimate for tomorrow night’s Powerball drawing is now about 31 percent.
A higher coverage percentage can mean it’s more likely there will be a jackpot winner, but it is not a definite.

(The odds of winning the jackpot in Powerball are about 1 in 292.2 million because that’s how many ways the numbers in the game can be combined to make a play. The winning numbers selected will be one of those combinations.)

Please Play Responsibly

And as always, the Iowa Lottery reminds everyone that it only takes one ticket to win. Please play responsibly. Remember this mantra: Playing smart is a lot more fun.

Powerball Ticket Purchased in Eastern Iowa Wins $2 Million Prize

Powerball ticket purchased in eastern Iowa won $2 Million in Saturday’s drawing.

The lucky ticket was purchased at Casey's, 403 Stephans St. in Tiffin and came within one number of winning last night's $1.4 billion jackpot. It matched all five white balls but missed the Powerball to win a $1 million prize. But whoever bought the ticket also added the Power Play® option to the purchase, which multiplies the prize at the Match 5 level to $2 million.

It was one of two tickets nationwide to win a $2 million prize, along with a ticket purchased in Maine.

Saturday’s winning numbers were: 47-54-57-60-65 and Powerball 19. The Power Play number was 3. No one matched all six numbers to win the jackpot, so the big prize climbs to an estimated $1.55 billion annuity, $679.8 million lump-sum option for Monday’s drawing.

Casey’s will receive a $2,000 bonus from the Iowa Lottery for selling the $2 million-winning ticket.

Prizes of $2 million must be claimed at Iowa Lottery headquarters in Clive. The lottery’s offices are open Monday through Friday. The winner or winners of the Tiffin prize can call the lottery at 515-725-7900 to make an appointment to claim it.

Powerball prizes won in Iowa must be claimed within 180 days of the drawing in which they were won.

Holiday-Themed Games Start Arriving In Stores Today – Save Your Tickets!

Pssssssssst! It’s that time of year a lot of folks have been waiting for: Our holiday-themed scratch games start arriving in stores today.

Of course you can win instant prizes on tickets in those games, but if you don’t win, hang onto that ticket! Nonwinning tickets in our holiday-themed games will be eligible for entry into our holiday promotion that starts later this month. And as you have heard us saying, it’s going to be HUGE!

Our holiday promotion starts on Oct. 24, and this time around, we’ll be giving away all-cash prizes.

So have fun for now playing the holiday games when you see them in stores and start gearing up for the promotion coming soon!