ialottery blog

Do Iowa Lottery Winners Really Get to Keep Those Big Checks?

Here’s a new question that just came our way: Do Iowa Lottery winners really get to keep those big checks you see in all the photos? The answer is: Yes, absolutely!

When a winner comes to one of our offices to claim a big prize, we do our best to make it a memorable time. We’re of course paying the person a significant sum, which makes it a notable moment. But we add in other special touches to help them celebrate!

Those oversized, ceremonial checks are of course part of the mix. For our very biggest winners, we custom-print a check that includes their name and details including the store where they bought their winning ticket. Other winners receive slightly smaller ceremonial checks made out in their names.

We send the oversized checks home with the winners along with their real checks, of course. We often say that the oversized checks are their evidence because they have to cash or deposit the real check.

It’s fun when we catch up with big winners later to hear what they did with their oversized checks. Some are framed and hung on the wall at home, some get taken to work, some have even been put up at the winner’s favorite local watering hole.

It’s pretty amazing the life that those oversized checks take on!

So yes, when you win big, the Iowa Lottery definitely will make an oversized check for you. And you’ll get to take it home, provided that it fits in your car!

The State Where You Bought Your Ticket Determines Where You Can Claim A Prize

Lottery players who bought tickets in Minnesota and Wisconsin contacted us this week, wanting to know if they could cash those tickets in Iowa.

The short answer is no. You have to claim any prize you win from the lottery in the state where you bought your ticket.

Here is the background involved:

If you buy a lottery ticket in Iowa, you’ll need to claim any prize you win on that ticket here in Iowa. And if you buy a ticket in another state, you’ll need to claim any prize you win from it in that state.

There’s an enormous amount of technology that goes into running a lottery, and each state lottery has its own computer system to track the tickets it produces and sells. Because each state lottery individually tracks its own tickets, sales and prizes, the computer systems involved are independent from each other.

That means the lottery equipment here in Iowa can’t read tickets from another state, and vice versa. In addition, the money raised from the sale of lottery tickets in each state stays in that state to support valuable causes there.

If visiting an Iowa Lottery retail location or one of our offices just won’t work for you, remember that we always offer players the option of claiming most prizes through the mail. (There are a few exceptions to that. For example, if you win a jackpot, that prize has to be claimed in person at our headquarters location in Clive.)

Many other state lotteries also offer players the ability to claim prizes by mail. Check with the respective state lottery from which you bought your ticket about those details.

Safe travels while you are out and about! And good luck on any lottery tickets you buy along the way!

Truth or Myth: Iowa's Age Limit To Buy Lottery Tix Is Higher Than In Most States

Here’s another entry in our Truth or Myth series to see how well you know the lottery. 

Truth or Myth: The minimum age to buy lottery tickets in Iowa is higher than for most other U.S. lotteries.

That one is true … but it wasn‘t always.

Today in Iowa, you have to be at least 21 years old to buy a lottery ticket. There are three other U.S. lotteries where that’s also the case: Arizona, Louisiana and Mississippi. And in Nebraska, the minimum legal age to buy lottery tickets is 19. The other 44 U.S. lotteries all have a minimum purchasing age of 18 for lottery tickets.

When the Iowa Lottery started in 1985, the legal minimum purchasing age was 18 for lottery tickets in our state. That remained the case for nearly a decade.

But in March 1994, as part of legislation involving several gambling issues, lawmakers raised the minimum purchasing age to 21 for lottery tickets in Iowa so there would be a universal age for all forms of gambling in our state. That age limit still applies today.

We’ll have another Truth or Myth update next month! It’s part of our efforts to keep you up on lottery details. Whether you play the lottery or not, we want everyone to have an accurate understanding of how the lottery works.

Clinton Man Claims $2 Million Powerball Prize He Won In November

A Clinton man has claimed a $2 million Powerball® prize he won in November.

Mark Krogman, 72, who is retired, claimed his prize today. He says he felt shock and joy when he realized he’d won big.

Krogman’s ticket was purchased at Clinton Liquor, 1641 S. Bluff Blvd. in Clinton, and came within one number of winning the $337.9 million jackpot in the Powerball drawing on Nov. 25.

His ticket initially matched the first five numbers but missed the Powerball to win a $1 million prize. But Krogman added the Power Play® option to his purchase, which multiplies the prize at the Match 5 level to $2 million.

Krogman’s ticket was the only one in the country to win a $2 million prize in that night’s drawing.

The winning numbers in the Nov. 25 drawing were: 27-33-63-66-68 and Powerball 9. The Power Play number was 2.

Clinton Liquor received a $2,000 bonus from the Iowa Lottery for selling the $2 million-winning ticket.

Krogman has specific plans for his winnings: He wants to pay off his house and possibly add onto it, help his family with needed finances, and just enjoy life.

Iowa Lottery, Iowa State Fair Celebrate Years Of Partnership With Scratch Game, Promotion & Live Game Show

An internationally acclaimed Iowa event is being celebrated with a new lottery scratch game and promotion offering prizes of up to $5 million and ticket packages to some of the most sought-after performances in the state.

Iowa Lottery CEO Matt Strawn (on the left), Iowa State Fair CEO Jeremy Parsons were joined by Iowa State Fair mascots Fairfield (the blue ribbon) and Rosetta as they made the announcement this afternoon: Tickets in the “Iowa State Fair” scratch game have begun arriving in stores today and will be available statewide by Friday! The $5 tickets feature iconic Iowa State Fair images, including a Ferris wheel, food on a stick, and livestock, all celebrating the Fair’s 2024 theme, Fair Fever.

Players who buy tickets in the Iowa State Fair scratch game have a chance to win instant prizes from $5 up to $50,000. But that’s just the start!

Nonwinning tickets in the game can be entered into the Iowa Lottery’s Fair Fever promotion that began this afternoon and will offer prizes of up to $5 million along with dozens of concert prize packages for performances at the 2024 Iowa State Fair, where the Iowa Lottery is the Grandstand sponsor.

The promotion will conclude with a live lottery game show on opening day of this year’s Iowa State Fair, where 20 contestants will compete for a total of $1 million in guaranteed prizes. The final contestant on the game show will win at least $500,000 and have a chance at a prize of up to $5 million!

The game show will be held Aug. 8 on the Fairgrounds Grand Concourse. Contestants that day will gradually be eliminated through a series of contests, with each competitor winning at least $10,000.

Going All The Way Back to 1985 …

The decades-long relationship between the Iowa State Fair and the Iowa Lottery began 39 years ago on the very first day of lottery ticket sales in Iowa. There was a kick-off celebration on Aug. 22, 1985, at the Iowa State Fair to mark the Iowa Lottery’s inaugural day.

In the mid-1990s, Iowa Lottery proceeds were dedicated for four years to funding capital improvements on the Iowa State Fairgrounds. Among the projects that received lottery funding was the extensive 1997 renovation of the Iowa State Fair Grandstand.

The Iowa Lottery has held many events at the Iowa State Fair through the years, including hosting a Powerball® drawing on the Grand Concourse in 2006. And in recent years, the Iowa Lottery has been the Day of Fair sponsor on the annual Veterans Day at the Iowa State Fair.

How To Enter The Promotion

To enter the Fair Fever promotion, Iowa Lottery players need to join or already be members of the lottery’s free VIP Club. The promotion’s entry period opens this afternoon and runs through 9:59 a.m. on July 16.

There will be two drawing dates in the promotion to select the contestants for the live game show at the Iowa State Fair along with the winners of concert-ticket prize packages for performances at the Iowa State Fair Grandstand.

The Prizes To Win

Up for grabs on the promotion’s first drawing date on June 6 are 27 ticket prize packages for each of these four Grandstand concerts:

• Thursday, Aug. 8: Lauren Daigle with special guest Blessing Offor.
• Friday, Aug. 9: Foreigner Historic Farewell Tour with special guest Melissa Etheridge.
• Saturday, Aug. 10: Jelly Roll with special guest DAX.
• Sunday, Aug. 11: Greta Van Fleet Starcatcher World Tour with special guest The Beaches.

In the promotion’s second drawing date on July 18, the game-show contestants will be selected along with the winners of 27 ticket prize packages for each these five Grandstand concerts:

• Monday, Aug. 12: Brett Young with special guest NEEDTOBREATHE.
• Tuesday, Aug. 13: Thomas Rhett.
• Wednesday, Aug. 14: Mötley Crüe with special guest Pop Evil.
• Friday, Aug. 16: The Avett Brothers with G. Love & Special Sauce.
• Saturday, Aug. 17: Ne-Yo with special guest Eric Bellinger.

There will be 4 ticket-level options available: pit standing area, club seats, Grandstand seats, and VIP spectator deck. Players will select the concert they want to attend and the level of tickets they want to win at the time they enter the promotion.

All concert prize packages will include 2 tickets to the show involved, admission tickets to the Iowa State Fair, parking and $100 spending money from the Iowa Lottery.

Newton Firefighter Claims $1 Million Powerball Prize During Total Eclipse

Iowa’s newest Powerball® millionaire claimed his prize today as the total eclipse of the sun was reaching its zenith in the Midwest. He says he knows the timing of it all is something to be remembered!

Trent Baker said he’d been joking that there was a lot going on in the last few days: an earthquake in New York, a total eclipse of the sun, and he won the lottery. He says he maybe shouldn’t ask what’s going to happen next!

Baker, 37, a firefighter, claimed his $1 million Powerball prize this afternoon at Iowa Lottery headquarters in Clive with a ticket he’d bought for Saturday’s drawing.

While Saturday’s $1.326 billion Powerball jackpot was won in Oregon, Baker’s ticket was one of seven across the country that were just one number away from having a share of the giant prize. Those $1 million-winning tickets each matched the first five numbers but missed the Powerball to win at the game’s second prize level.

How He Found Out He Won

Baker said he was up early for work yesterday when he decided to use the Iowa Lottery app on his mobile phone to check the results of the five Powerball tickets he’d bought the night before. His phone dinged on the second ticket he checked, indicating that it was a winner.

He said he saw a 1 and a bunch of zeroes and wasn’t sure what it meant – if he’d won $1 million or $1 billion.

Baker said he couldn’t report for a shift at the fire station without having another verification of his win, so he took his easy-pick ticket to a local convenience store and had it checked on the lottery terminal there. The clerk at the store confirmed it was a $1 million winner.

Baker said he made it to work on time and shared the news with his co-workers at the fire station. But after working for a few hours and worrying that his scattered thoughts could cause him to make a critical error, he took the rest of his shift off, using the time to research his next steps.

His Plans For The Future, Including Ice Cream

By the time he claimed his prize this afternoon, he’d already spoken with a financial planner, identified the total he needed to pay off his student loans, and made plans to invest the bulk of his winnings. He said he knows that winning the lottery is a once-in-a-lifetime thing, and he wants to make his winnings last as long as possible.

Baker bought his lucky ticket at Hy-Vee, 1501 First Ave. E. in Newton. Hy-Vee will receive a $1,000 bonus from the Iowa Lottery for selling the $1 million-winning ticket.

And while Baker has made long-term plans for his winnings, he also knows he has an immediate purchase in his future that’s a tradition at his fire station. He says that he and his fellow firefighters have an unwritten rule that if they end up in pictures or video in the media, they owe the department ice cream.

And he says he’s going to owe a lot of ice cream now!

$1 Million Powerball Prize Won In Newton

The jackpot hub-bub is over for now – until the next big one comes along!

While the jackpot in last night’s $1.326 billion Powerball® drawing was won in Oregon, an Iowa ticket was just one number away from having a share of the grand prize. That Iowa ticket, purchased in Newton, won a $1 million prize.

The Powerball jackpot had climbed for more than 3 months and tied the game’s record for the longest string of consecutive drawings without a winner before it was won last night. The jackpot had been won on New Year’s Day, then rolled for 41 drawings in a row without a winner. That had only occurred twice before, in 2021 and 2022.

Last night’s jackpot was the 4th-largest Powerball prize and the 8th-largest U.S. lottery prize. The jackpot now returns to $20 million annuity, $9.4 million lump-sum option, for Powerball’s next drawing tomorrow night.

Iowa Sales and Total Prizes Won

Iowa Lottery players won a total of 45,721 Powerball prizes last night ranging from $4 up to $1 million. A total of about $2.4 million in Powerball tickets for last night were purchased in Iowa.

One Iowa ticket was just 1 number away from having a share of last night’s jackpot, matching the first 5 numbers but missing the Powerball to win a $1 million prize. That winning ticket was purchased at Hy-Vee, 1501 First Ave. E. in Newton.

It was one of 7 tickets across the country to win a $1 million prize in last night's drawing.

Last night's winning Powerball numbers were: 22-27-44-52-69 and Powerball 9. The Power Play number was 3.

The $1 million prize must be claimed at Iowa Lottery headquarters in Clive. If the winner or winners have questions before claiming the prize, they’re welcome to call us at the Iowa Lottery at 515-725-7900 or email us at [email protected].

Details About ‘Coverage’ & Easy Picks

Two details get a lot of attention in Powerball drawings: the coverage estimate and the percentage of easy picks.

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 purchased, or “covered.”

The coverage estimate for last night’s Powerball drawing was about 31.1 percent. A higher coverage percentage can mean it’s more likely there will be a jackpot winner, but it’s not a definite.

Sales details also show how many of the tickets purchased are easy picks, meaning that the lottery terminal randomly selected the numbers printed on the ticket, as compared to manual plays, where the player selected their own numbers.

Nearly 92 percent of the tickets purchased in Iowa for last night’s Powerball drawing were easy-pick tickets.

With that huge percentage of tickets purchased being easy picks, more of the winners will come from easy-pick tickets as well. That does not mean those tickets are luckier, it just means there are a lot more of them.

Powerball Jackpot Climbs To $1.3 Billion, Iowa Ticket Was 1 Number Away Last Night

Update on April 5: Strong sales in Iowa and across the country have pushed the Powerball jackpot even higher for Saturday's drawing! The jackpot for Saturday now stands at an estimated $1.3 billion annuity, $608.9 million lump-sum value.   

Powerball® has tied the game’s record for the most drawings in a row without a grand-prize winner.

The jackpot was last won on New Year’s Day. Saturday’s drawing will be the 41st in the current jackpot run. The Powerball jackpot has only ever rolled this long without a winner twice before, in 2021 and 2022.

The current jackpot is the 4th-largest Powerball prize and the 8th-largest U.S. lottery jackpot.

Total Iowa Prizes Won In Last Night’s Drawing

Iowa Lottery players won a total of 30,704 prizes in last night’s Powerball drawing ranging from $4 up to $150,000.

One Iowa ticket was just 1 number away from having a share of the jackpot, matching 4 of the first 5 numbers and the Powerball to initially win a $50,000 prize. But the player who bought the ticket added the Power Play® option to the purchase, which tripled the winnings to $150,000.

The $150,000-winning ticket was purchased at Casey’s, 916 E. Main St. In Marshalltown.

The winning numbers in last night’s Powerball drawing were: 11-38-41-62-65 and Powerball 15. The Power Play number was 3.

The $150,000 prize can be claimed at any Iowa Lottery office. If the winner has questions before claiming the prize, they’re welcome to call the Iowa Lottery at 515-725-7900 or email us at [email protected].

A Note About ‘Coverage’

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

The coverage estimate for last night’s Powerball drawing was about 22.6 percent. The coverage estimate for Saturday’s drawing is currently about 25.5 percent and could climb higher as ticket sales increase.

A higher coverage percentage can mean it’s more likely there will be a jackpot winner, but it is not a definite.

Play Healthy

At the Iowa Lottery, we ask our players to remember that you are gambling when you buy a ticket -- there’s no guarantee you’ll win. Please be sure that playing the lottery is something you do just for fun. Set a limit and stay within it for how much you’ll spend as you play.

Powerball Jackpot At Est. $1.09 Billion For Tomorrow Night’s Drawing

The Powerball® jackpot continues to climb, making it through its latest drawing and becoming the 2nd U.S. lottery prize in a week to top the $1 billion mark.

The jackpot for Powerball’s next drawing tomorrow night now stands at an estimated $1.09 billion annuity, $527.3 million lump-sum option.

It follows a Mega Millions® jackpot of $1.13 billion won in that game’s March 26 drawing.

While the current Powerball jackpot is huge, it has room to grow before approaching record territory. Powerball holds the world record for a lottery jackpot, a $2.04 billion prize won in November 2022.

The current jackpot is the 4th-largest Powerball prize and the 9th-largest U.S. lottery prize.

Total Prizes Won in Iowa in Last Night’s Drawing

Iowa Lottery players won a total of 20,995 prizes in last night’s Powerball drawing ranging from $4 up to $100,000.

Two Iowa tickets were just 1 number away from having a share of the jackpot, matching 4 of the first 5 numbers and the Powerball. One of those tickets won a $50,000 prize, while the other won a $100,000 prize. The player who bought the $100,000-winning ticket added the Power Play® option to the purchase, which doubled the prize.

The winning numbers in last night’s Powerball drawing were: 19-24-40-42-56 and Powerball 23. The Power Play number was 2.

The $50,000-winning ticket was purchased at Kimmes Carroll Country Store, 422 W. Sixth St. in Carroll.

The $100,000-winning ticket was purchased at Kwik Star, 111 E. Donald St. in Waterloo.

Those two prizes can be claimed at any Iowa Lottery office. If the winners have questions beforehand, they’re welcome to call us at the Iowa Lottery at 515-725-7900 or email us at [email protected].

Play Healthy

At the Iowa Lottery, we offer this reminder amid the giant jackpots: You are gambling when you buy tickets and there’s no guarantee you'll win. Playing the lottery is something you do just for fun.

Powerball Jackpot Becomes 2nd In A Week To Reach $1 Billion

This is no April Fool’s joke: For the 2nd time in a week, a lottery jackpot of $1 billion is on the line.

This time, it’s in Powerball®, where the jackpot for that game’s drawing tonight now stands at an estimated $1 billion annuity, $483.8 million lump-sum option. It follows a Mega Millions® jackpot of $1.13 billion won in that game’s March 26 drawing.

The two jackpots climbed together for nearly three months, simultaneously topping $800 million for the first time in late March.

With Mega Millions being won, the bulk of the jackpot attention is now on Powerball as it continues to grow. The Powerball jackpot was last won on New Year’s Day. And while the jackpot is huge, it has a lot of room to go before it would hit record territory. Powerball holds the world record for a lottery jackpot, a $2.04 billion prize won in November 2022.

Withholding Rates In Iowa For A Jackpot Prize

At the Iowa Lottery, we’ve been fielding tax-related questions about the giant jackpots. We can answer some of them, but others would need to be addressed by a tax expert. That’s just one of the reasons we always encourage our winners to consult a lawyer or financial planner who can help them put together a plan for their winnings.

Here are the specifics the lottery can provide: For any jackpot prize claimed in Iowa, 24 percent federal withholding applies along with 5 percent state withholding. Those amounts are automatically deducted before the prize is paid and can’t be modified or waived.

The withholdings are designed to cover a prize winner’s tax liability from claiming a large lottery prize. But the total taxes that a winner would owe are dependent upon that person’s financial circumstances outside of winning the lottery.

In some instances, the withholdings may not be enough, in other instances, they may be too much. The details would be sorted out in the winner’s income-tax filing for the year.

Scammers Unfortunately Notice Big Jackpots, Too

Scam attempts have been at all-time highs in recent years, and while the criminals behind them run cons of all types, they turn their attention to impersonating lotteries when jackpots are high.

Scammers have fraudulently used the names and logos of lotteries and well-known lottery games, along with the names of lottery winners and lottery officials in an attempt to steal people’s money.

The scams can involve persistent telephone calls and official-looking emails, text messages, social media postings and letters. They promise big prizes and will try to lure you into thinking you’ve won. But it’s a scam. A common thread is that the unsuspecting “winner” is asked to pay money up front for things like taxes, processing fees or delivery charges.

The scammers can sound really convincing. But it’s important to remember this simple truth: There is never a fee to claim a real lottery prize. If you’re asked to pay money up front, it’s a scam.

When you win a prize in a game like Powerball or Mega Millions, you notify the lottery that you’re the winner, not the other way around. The Iowa Lottery has records about the winning ticket and where it was purchased, but we don’t know the winner’s identity until that person comes forward to claim the prize.

The Iowa Lottery keeps these and other security reminders as a permanent feature on its website to help consumers stay safe.

Play Healthy

At the Iowa Lottery, we want our players to enjoy the moment when it comes to big-jackpot fun, but remember that you are gambling when you buy tickets. There is no guarantee you'll win. Playing the lottery is something that should be done just for fun.