ialottery blog

Powerball Ticket Purchased in Webster City Wins $1 Million Prize

Someone who bought a Powerball® ticket in Webster City won a $1 million prize in the game’s drawing last night!

The $1 million-winning ticket was purchased at Fareway, 942 Second St. in Webster City. It matched the first five numbers but missed the Powerball to win a $1 million prize.

Last night’s winning numbers were: 29-42-44-51-54 and Powerball 12. The Power Play® number was 2. No one matched all six numbers to win the jackpot, so the big prize climbs to an estimated $185 million annuity ($92.1 million lump-sum option) for the game’s next drawing tomorrow.

The Webster City ticket was the only one in the country to win a $1 million prize in last night’s drawing.

Fareway will receive a $1,000 bonus from the Iowa Lottery for selling the $1 million-winning ticket.

The $1 million prize has to be claimed at Iowa Lottery headquarters in Clive. The lottery’s offices are open Monday through Friday, and an appointment is strongly encouraged.

To make an appointment or ask questions about claiming a prize, winners are welcome to call the lottery at 515-725-7900 or email to [email protected].

Powerball prizes won in Iowa have to be claimed within 180 days of the drawing.

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!

Congratulations to the Million Dollar Holiday winners!

There may be snow and icy temperatures on the horizon, but a big lottery win is sure to warm you up!

It's been great fun getting to meet some of our Million Dollar Holiday winners today, including Heidi Olsen of Allison and Renee Stanbrough of Nashua. Heidi won the $500,000 top prize in Wednesday's drawing, while Renee took home a $100,000 prize in the same promotion.

Heidi found out she was a winner when she checked her email last night. She quickly called for her husband, Gabe, who thought from her alarmed tone of voice that something bad happened.

"It was really crazy, exciting and surreal," she said. "It's probably one of the best feelings ever, I would say."

As the name suggests, the Million Dollar Holiday awarded a total of $1 million in prizes, including a $500,000 top prize, two prizes of $100,000 and a $50,000 prize. You can see the full winners' list here.

The promotion was born after a $1 million prize last year went unclaimed. That unclaimed prize money was then awarded in the lottery's holiday promotion that ended this week.

 

 

 

 

I’m Having Trouble Claiming My Prize …

We helped a lottery player this week who had gone to a store where his prize couldn’t be paid. Ultimately, he was able to claim his $200 in winnings, and I’ll share the same details here that we provided to him.

The Iowa Lottery requires that its retailers pay prizes of up to $100. We ask that they pay prizes of up to $600, but not all stores keep that amount of cash on hand. And we understand the reasons why. Safety is a top priority in retail locations for staff and customers, with available cash routinely kept at a minimum, especially during business hours after dark.

If the retail location you've visited isn't able to pay your prize, you have a couple options: You can try to claim it at a larger store that sells lottery tickets, such as a supermarket. Or, you can visit one of our offices or send the ticket to us at the Iowa Lottery so we can validate it.

All prizes of more than $600 have to be claimed directly from the Iowa Lottery. Our offices can provide greater security when you’re claiming a larger amount of money, and there are tax forms you’ll need to fill out when you’re claiming a prize of that size.

Our Regional Offices in Cedar Rapids, Mason City and Storm Lake can pay prizes of up to $250,000.

Our very biggest prizes – meaning those of more than $250,000 – as well as some merchandise prizes have to be claimed in person at Iowa Lottery headquarters in Clive.

We keep all the details about the claims process, including the documentation you'll need to have with you, on our website’s How To Claim A Prize page.

Good luck on your tickets and we hope to meet you as a winner soon!

Prize Of $25,000 A Year For Life In Lucky For Life Game Won In Williamsburg

Someone who bought a Lucky for Life® ticket at a Williamsburg convenience store won a prize of $25,000 a year for life in last night’s drawing.

It’s Iowa’s 18th big win in Lucky for Life since the game’s January 2016 debut in our state.

The ticket matched the first five numbers but missed the Lucky Ball in last night’s Lucky for Life drawing to win the game’s second prize of $25,000 a year for life. The winning ticket was purchased at the Casey’s, 602 S. Highland St. in Williamsburg.

The winning numbers in last night’s Lucky for Life drawing were: 1-7-20-21-38 and Lucky Ball 15. Casey’s will receive a $500 bonus from the lottery for selling the winning ticket.

Lucky for Life is a $2 game with drawings each night. The game’s top two prize levels are described as “lasting as long as you do,” meaning that they are truly for life. The minimum guaranteed payout for those two prize levels is 20 years, and there’s a lump-sum option for players who want that rather than lifetime annuity payments.

Prizes at the top two levels in Lucky for Life need to be claimed at Iowa Lottery headquarters in Clive. If the winner or winners of the lucky ticket have questions before coming forward to claim the prize, they’re welcome to call us at 515-725-7900 or email us at [email protected].

Players in Lucky for Life have up to 365 days from the date of the drawing to claim prizes won in Iowa.

Prize Of $25,000 A Year For Life In Lucky For Life Game Won In Waterloo

Someone who bought a Lucky for Life® ticket at a Waterloo convenience store won a prize of $25,000 a year for life in last night’s drawing.

It’s Iowa’s 17th big win in Lucky for Life since the game’s January 2016 debut in our state.

The ticket matched the first five numbers but missed the Lucky Ball in last night’s Lucky for Life drawing to win the game’s second prize of $25,000 a year for life. The winning ticket was purchased at the Kwik Star, 1636 W. Fourth St. in Waterloo.

The winning numbers in last night’s Lucky for Life drawing were: 3-12-17-42-45 and Lucky Ball 6. Kwik Star will receive a $500 bonus from the lottery for selling the winning ticket.

Lucky for Life is a $2 game with drawings each night. The game’s top two prize levels are described as “lasting as long as you do,” meaning that they are truly for life. The minimum guaranteed payout for those two prize levels is 20 years, and there’s a lump-sum option for players who want that rather than lifetime annuity payments.

Prizes at the top two levels in Lucky for Life need to be claimed at Iowa Lottery headquarters in Clive. If the winner or winners of the lucky ticket have questions before coming forward to claim the prize, they’re welcome to call us at 515-725-7900 or email us [email protected].

Players in Lucky for Life have up to 365 days from the date of the drawing to claim prizes won in Iowa.

Such A Relatable Story: He Had To Check His Winning Ticket A BUNCH Of Times

This player’s story made me smile because it’s just so relatable. I think we can all imagine ourselves in his situation – and the disbelief we might have!

An eastern Iowa man who claimed a $10,000 prize at our Cedar Rapids office said that after he played his scratch ticket, he checked it and couldn’t believe what he was seeing. So, he scanned it three more times on the lottery’s mobile app and then went back into the gas station where he bought it to have them check it, too.

Louis Janecek II of Shellsburg said he just wanted to be sure! In the end, he realized he was the winner of a $10,000 prize. He claimed the eighth prize of $10,000 available in “The Perfect Gift” holiday scratch game.

Louis bought his winning ticket at Palo Mini Mart, 1204 First St. in Palo.

He said he plans to use his winnings to pay bills and buy Christmas gifts for his four children. Louis said his lottery win will just make everything that much nicer for the holidays.

Congratulations, Louis! I’m thinking that your big win may finally seem real by now!

Remember, There Are Two Areas That Can Be Matched In This Game

Some players have reached out to us about the “X The Money” scratch game, wanting to double-check the prize amount they won. Some thought they won less than they actually had, and a couple thought they didn’t win at all, even when the scan of their ticket showed the prize amount they won.

The disconnect came because they didn’t play the “X” multiplier spots at the top of their ticket.

In the play area on tickets in the X The Money game, the 15 numbers for you to play are in the Your Numbers section at the bottom. When you scratch off that area, you’ll uncover the numbers and the prize linked with each of them.

If you match any of Your Numbers to any of the five Winning Numbers in the middle of the ticket, you win the prize shown with Your Number. But don’t forget that you also will try to match Your Numbers to any of the five multiplier spots at the top of the ticket. If you match one of the X multipliers, the prize shown for Your Number is multiplied by the number in the X spot.

You can win more than one prize in each area, so be sure to check all the numbers. As an example, a player who contacted us had won a $5 prize by matching one of the Winning Numbers, but didn’t realize that she also had matched one of the multiplier numbers. That produced an additional $10 prize for a total of $15 in winnings on her ticket.

The X The Money game is named for its multiplier spots, so be sure to play them!

Player Question: Why Do Larger Prizes Have To Be Claimed at Lottery HQ?

Here’s the background we shared with a player this month who claimed a sizeable prize and wondered why they needed to come to Lottery headquarters for their winnings as opposed to one of our regional offices in Cedar Rapids, Mason City or Storm Lake.

The quick answer is that there are more security protocols involved when larger prizes are claimed. 

But here are the additional details about where you can claim lottery prizes of different amounts:

Prizes of more than $600 have to be claimed directly from the Iowa Lottery. Our offices can provide greater security when you’re claiming a larger amount of money, and there are tax forms you’ll need to fill out when you’re claiming a prize of that size.

The lottery requires that its retailers pay prizes of up to $100. We ask that they pay prizes of up to $600, but not all stores keep that amount of cash on hand, and we understand the reasons why. Safety is a top priority at retail locations for staff and customers, and available cash routinely is kept at a minimum, especially during business hours after dark.

If the retail location you've visited isn't able to pay your prize, you have a couple options: You can try to claim it at a larger store that sells lottery tickets, such as a supermarket. Or, you can visit one of our offices or send the ticket to us at the Iowa Lottery so we can validate it. (Our very biggest prizes, meaning those of more than $250,000, as well as some merchandise prizes, have to be claimed in person at Iowa Lottery headquarters in Clive.)

We keep all the details about the claims process, including the documentation you'll need to have with you, on our website’s How To Claim A Prize page.

Good luck as you play your lottery tickets and we hope to meet you as a winner soon!

Did You Already Win? More Than A Dozen Large Prizes Currently Unclaimed In Iowa

There’s never a bad time to win a lottery prize. So here's a reminder from us that more than a dozen large lottery prizes are currently unclaimed in Iowa — so please double-check your tickets!

On our Unclaimed Prizes list on the Iowa Lottery website, you can see all the prizes of $600 or more in Iowa that are still unclaimed in lotto and InstaPlay games. You can sort the list in several different ways — by game, place of purchase, prize amount, date of win and date of expiration — to key in on the details that matter most to you.

As of today, there are a whopping 19 prizes of $10,000 or more that are waiting to be claimed. At the top of the list is a Lucky for Life prize of $25,000 a year for life (or a $390,000 lump-sum option) that was won with a ticket purchased at Casey’s, 641 Edgewood Road NW in Cedar Rapids.

As for prizes on that list that will expire the soonest, you’ll note that there are numerous prizes expiring on Jan. 3, 2022. That includes a $12,000 Pick 4 prize that was won in the Oct. 3 evening drawing on a ticket purchased at Price Chopper, 4343 Merle Hay Road in Des Moines.

All prizes on the list must be claimed at a lottery office or by mail. The Lucky for Life prize must be claimed at lottery headquarters in Clive. If you have any questions about claiming a prize, give us a call at 515-725-7900 or email us at [email protected].

Helpful Advice From A Big Winner

A northern Iowa woman who won a $10,000 prize has some helpful advice for fellow lottery players: Check your tickets!

Julie Ackley of Osage won the big prize on a “$100,000 Mega Crossword” ticket she purchased at a local convenience store. But after scratching the ticket, she thought it was a nonwinner.

She said she took it back to the store later to double-check she hadn’t won a prize. That’s when she scanned the ticket on the store’s self-checker and realized her big win.

Julie said she scanned the ticket a couple more times just to be sure. She was jumping around the gas station in delight!

Here in Iowa, there are several ways to check your lottery tickets. If you have a lotto ticket in a game like Powerball or Mega Millions, you can check your numbers on our website, www.ialottery.com.

All lotto, scratch and InstaPlay tickets can be checked either at a licensed lottery retailer (as Julie did) or on our LotteryPlus mobile app. When you scan your ticket with the app, it’ll tell you whether or not your ticket is a winner, and if so, the size of your prize. It will also display where you can redeem your ticket: at a lottery location, at a lottery office or at lottery headquarters only, depending on the prize amount involved.

Take heed of Julie's advice and always check your tickets. We'd hate for you to accidentally toss away a winning ticket. Better safe than sorry!

Ticket Purchased In SW Iowa Wins Prize Of $25,000 A Year For Life

Someone who bought a lottery ticket at a southwest Iowa convenience store has won a prize of $25,000 a year for life in the Lucky for Life game.

An Atlantic ticket matched the first five numbers but missed the Lucky Ball in last night’s drawing to win Lucky for Life’s second prize of $25,000 a year for life. The winning ticket was purchased at Casey’s, 701 Poplar St. in Atlantic.

It is Iowa’s ninth big winner in the game since it debuted in January 2016 in our state.

Lucky for Life is a $2 game with drawings twice a week, at 9:38 p.m. on Mondays and Thursdays. The game’s top two prize levels are described as “lasting as long as you do,” meaning that they are truly for life. The minimum guaranteed payout for those two prize levels is 20 years, and there is a lump-sum option for players who prefer that rather than lifetime annuity payments.

The winning numbers in last night’s Lucky for Life drawing were: 25-28-32-47-48 and Lucky Ball 14. Casey’s will receive a $500 bonus from the lottery for selling the winning ticket at one of its locations.

This prize must be claimed at Iowa Lottery headquarters in Clive. During the current public health emergency, public access to lottery offices is restricted to email and telephone. Players can call 515-725-7900 and schedule a curbside claim, mail or ship their winning tickets to the lottery to claim prizes or utilize the secure dropbox option at the Clive location. Full details are available on the lottery’s website here.

If the winner or winners of the Atlantic ticket have questions before coming forward to claim the prize, they’re welcome to call us at the lottery at 515-725-7900.

There is plenty of time for this prize to be claimed: Players in Lucky for Life have up to 365 days from the date of the drawing to claim prizes won in Iowa.

Ticket Purchased In Hardin County Area Wins $1 Million Prize

Someone who bought a Mega Millions® ticket at a Hardin County convenience store won a $1 million prize in last night’s drawing.

It’s the sixth prize of at least $1 million won in Iowa so far this year.

The $1 million-winning ticket was purchased at Casey’s, 1807 Edgington Ave. in Eldora. The ticket came within one number of having at least a share of last night’s $372 million Mega Millions jackpot.

The Eldora ticket matched the first five numbers but missed the Mega Ball to win a $1 million prize. It was one of three tickets across the country to win a $1 million prize in last night’s drawing. A $2 million-winning ticket was sold in Pennsylvania, and a single ticket purchased in Ohio won Tuesday night’s jackpot.

Last night’s winning numbers were: 22-30-53-55-56 and Mega Ball 16. The Megaplier® number was 2. 

Casey’s will receive a $1,000 bonus from the Iowa Lottery for selling the $1 million-winning ticket at one of its stores.

Prizes of $1 million must be claimed at Iowa Lottery headquarters in Clive. The lottery’s offices are open Monday through Friday. If you think you’re the big winner and you have questions before coming forward to claim the prize, please feel free to give us a shout at the lottery at 515-725-7900 or by email at [email protected].

$1 Million Powerball Prize About To Expire!

Here is video from our event yesterday to highlight the $1 million prize that’s nearing its expiration date in central Iowa! We’re hoping to jog someone’s memory who purchased a Powerball ticket at this Casey’s in Nevada for the drawing on April 11, 2018, and won $1 million! The deadline to claim the prize is at 4 p.m. on April 11, 2019. Is it YOU?

All The Spots With Big Prizes In February

We’ve made it to the other side of a snowy-nasty February, so we’re pausing to look back at the biggest lottery prizes claimed in Iowa during the shortest month of the year (which sometimes felt like the longest this time around).

This map shows all of the lottery prizes of $600 or more that were claimed in February. You’ll find 399 dots on it, as compared to 427 on January’s map. The difference comes down to February’s shorter number of days, because both months averaged about 14 to 15 big winners per day. So even with the wintry weather, people still made it in to see us and claim their prizes!  

I said it when we looked at January’s numbers and I’ll say it again now: The patterns on this map put into perspective something that we’ve often said about prize wins: In bigger cities, more people are buying tickets and winning prizes. That’s not a matter of luck, it’s a matter of population.

Another way of putting it is that if 5 percent of lottery tickets are sold in a particular area, you expect to find about 5 percent of the overall winners there. Everyone has the same chance of winning, but there will be more winners in places where more tickets are being sold. That’s why there are more dots (prizes) on this map in areas where there are bigger populations. But there really is no telling where the next big winner will hit.

Click here for a direct link to this map in an interactive format where you can see the details involved. Each dot shows the retail location where the winning ticket was purchased, the prize won, the game involved, and the date the prize was claimed.

The dots are in different colors for the four types of lottery games here in Iowa: scratch games, lotto games, InstaPlay games and pull-tab games. Scratch tickets have always been the Iowa Lottery’s leading product and they’re represented on the map by red dots, so it makes sense that there are a lot of them!

I’ll note that this map only shows those big prizes that were claimed in January. It doesn’t include prizes that were won but haven’t been claimed yet.

48 Winners Headed To Bball Tourney In Des Moines!

Our Suite Seats promotion ended yesterday, and 48 lucky winners scored tickets to next month’s men’s basketball tournament at the Iowa Events Center in Des Moines. Click here to see the list of winners!

 

We had winners from all around Iowa, and even one from Burnsville, Minn.! Each prize package includes a pair of tickets in an exclusive Lottery suite on either Thursday, March 21 or Saturday, March 23, along with food, beverages and a parking pass – everything they’ll need for a fun time at the tournament!

 

If you’re one of the winners, please check your inbox for an email on how to claim your prize.

I Lost My Ticket! What Can I Do?

A player from northeast Iowa emailed us with a question that made us so sad about the lottery ticket she’d bought, because there was no way for us to help her. The same thing could happen to you, so please learn from her situation.

The woman said she bought a scratch ticket at a convenience store in Waterloo on her way to work. She didn’t play it right away, and continued on her way. When she arrived at work, she noticed that her purse must have fallen open at some point, and her ticket was gone.

The woman said she went back to look for the ticket, but she never found it. Because she didn’t know whether it had won a prize, she wondered if by letting us know that she had lost it, she could somehow have a claim to any prize if someone else later claimed it.

The woman said she hadn’t signed her ticket when she bought it, and that’s a key point. A lottery ticket without a signature on it is like a blank check. In legal terms, it’s what is known as a bearer instrument, meaning that the person bearing it is considered the owner.

That is why we urge our players to sign the back of their tickets as soon as they buy them. When you sign your ticket, you identify it – and any prize you may win – as belonging to you. It may seem like something that doesn’t matter, but this woman’s story unfortunately illustrates why it’s so important.

 

How Much Withholding Applies & When For Iowa Lottery Prizes?

When we posted about a recent $5,000 prize won in eastern Iowa in the Lucky for Life game, one of our Facebook followers asked how much the winner would actually take home after withholding taxes applied. In the case of that prize, the answer is $4,750.

There is no withholding on Iowa Lottery prizes of $600 or less. A state withholding rate of 5 percent applies to all Iowa Lottery prizes of more than $600 and an additional 24 percent federal withholding rate applies to Iowa Lottery prizes of more than $5,000.

The Lucky for Life prize was just under the threshold for federal withholding, so only the state rate applied.

We’re sometimes asked by lottery winners if we can withhold more or less than the rates I’ve specified here – or if we can take out no withholding at all. We don’t have that option. The law requires that those rates automatically apply, and the withholding is taken out before we give the prize check to the winner.

If you have other questions about how to claim a prize from us here at the lottery, please check out the “Claiming Prizes” page on our website. We have links there to the forms that are required and details about the other documents you’ll need to provide.

Hey, I Bought A Lottery Ticket In Iowa While I Was Traveling. Now What?

A man from Connecticut just sent us a question you may also have when it comes to lottery tickets from other states. The man said he bought a lottery ticket in Iowa while he was here on a recent trip and – good news – he won a prize! He didn’t cash the ticket while he was here, and when he got home, he wondered about his options for claiming the winnings. 

If you buy a lottery ticket in Iowa, you’ll need to claim any prize involved from us at the Iowa Lottery. And if you buy a ticket in another state, you’ll need to claim any prize won from it in that state. It’s a simple process to claim most of our prizes by mail, so no worries! 

So why is that? There’s an enormous amount of technology that goes into running a lottery today, and each state lottery has its own computer system to track the tickets it sells. That, in turn, means that the computer systems in each state are independent from each other. So, our lottery terminals here in Iowa can’t read tickets from out of state, and vice versa. In addition, the money raised from the sale of lottery tickets in each state stays in that state to support worthy 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 in Clive.)

Most other state lotteries also offer players the ability to claim prizes by mail. Check with the respective state lottery from which you purchased your ticket about the details in that regard.

We wish everyone safe travels this summer -- and good luck on any lottery tickets you buy along the way!

Just Where Can I Claim A Lottery Prize?

A player has sent this question our way: Does it matter where I claim my lottery prize? And are there different rules for bigger prizes? The quick answers are: Yes and yes! But here's the full story:

You can claim prizes of up to $600 in Iowa Lottery games at any retail location where tickets are sold if sufficient funds are available. Please note the last part of that sentence: if sufficient funds are available. For a variety of workplace safety reasons, many locations don't keep a large amount of cash on hand these days, particularly after dark. So even though retail locations can pay prizes of up to $600, they may not always have the money on hand to do that, and we understand that.

That's why we always offer players the option of claiming prizes by mail or at one of our regional offices around the state.

Prizes of more than $600 must be claimed directly from the lottery, either by mail or by visiting one of our offices. Our very biggest prizes, meaning those of more than $250,000, as well as some merchandise prizes, must be claimed in person at Iowa Lottery headquarters in Clive.

We keep all the details about the claims process, including the documentation you'll need to provide, on the How To Claim A Prize page on our website. Good luck on your lottery tickets and we hope to meet you as a winner soon!

Tax Overhaul Brings Small Change In Withholding Rate For Some Lottery Prizes

The federal tax overhaul that took effect this month includes a small change for lottery winners who claim prizes of more than $5,000. The federal withholding rate that applies to those prizes has decreased just a bit.

For years, the federal withholding rate that applied to lottery prizes of more than $5,000 was 25 percent. Under the new tax rates that took effect this month, that rate has been lowered to 24 percent. The state withholding rate remains unchanged at 5 percent for all Iowa Lottery prizes of more than $600.

So if you win a big lottery prize, a little bit less in withholdings will be deducted from your winnings.

We implemented the withholding change here at the Iowa Lottery on Monday (Jan. 29). So if you claimed a prize of more than $5,000 that day or claim one in the future, the new rate will now apply.

Player Mail: How Can A 20-Year-Old Win The Lottery?

Since news broke last week that a 20-year-old Florida man won the giant Mega Millions jackpot from earlier this month, we've gotten questions from players wondering how it's possible that someone younger than the minimum purchasing age in Iowa could win a big lottery prize.

It may be a surprise to folks here in Iowa, but our state is a bit of an anomaly when it comes to the minimum purchasing age for lottery tickets. You have to be at least 21 years old to buy lottery tickets in Iowa. But in the vast majority of U.S. states, you only have to be at least 18 to buy a ticket. The laws vary from state to state because lotteries are authorized and regulated on a state-by-state basis.

The minimum purchasing age in Florida is 18, so it was perfectly OK for 20-year-old Shane Missler from the Tampa suburb of Port Richey to buy the winning ticket and claim the $451 million Mega Millions jackpot from the Jan. 5 drawing.

When Shane claimed his jackpot, he said he planned to help his family, have some fun along the way, and do some good for humanity. Click here to see Shane's full story!

Meet The Iowa Lottery's First Millionaire Of 2018

 

George Dickerson of Colfax almost missed buying the ticket that won a $1 million Powerball^® prize. The cold weather and a quickly approaching deadline for ticket sales almost kept him home. Click on the video above to hear his story!

Player Mail: Can I Still Claim A Prize From This Old Ticket?

A couple players have come to lottery headquarters here in Clive this month with tickets that were expired – meaning the date had passed by which prizes could be claimed in those games. The players wanted to know if we could still cash the tickets anyway. The quick answer is no, and here are the details why.

One of the players had a ticket from a couple years ago and the other had a ticket older than that. In another instance earlier this year, someone sent us a ticket from one of the Iowa Lottery’s first scratch games from the 1980s and wondered if the prize from it could still be claimed.

From a record-keeping perspective, the lottery establishes end dates for its scratch and pull-tab games and the corresponding expiration dates for prizes in them. There also are deadlines for claiming prizes in our lotto games (365 days from the date of the drawing in Powerball®, Mega Millions®, Hot Lotto®, and Lucky for Life®; and 90 days from the date of the drawing in Iowa’s Pick 3 and Pick 4 games).

Technology has changed so much that our equipment today can’t check tickets from years ago. We have to keep on hand a tremendous amount of electronic data so that lottery tickets can be checked and cashed statewide. And simply from a space perspective – physical or electronic – it’s not possible to maintain decades’ worth of the detailed records necessary for a lottery prize to be claimed. Those realities dictate that there are deadlines by which lottery prizes must be claimed.

Money from unclaimed prizes here in Iowa goes into the lottery’s prize pools for future games and promotions, so it will be used to pay prizes, just not those prizes that have expired.

We keep a lot of information on our website to help you track our games and the prizes in them. For our pull-tab and scratch games, we provide: 1.) details about the games currently for sale statewide; 2.) a listing of those games where ticket distribution has recently ended; 3.) the deadlines by which prizes must be claimed in games that have official end dates; 4.) and lists of those games that have ended and in which prizes can no longer be claimed.

For our lotto games, we provide details about our current games available statewide and a list of prizes of $600 or more that are still unclaimed.

Bottom line, if you have won a lottery prize, please claim it quickly so you don’t have to worry about things like games that have ended and prizes that have expired. And keep your winning ticket in a safe place, because you’ll need to present it to us to claim the prize involved!

Player Mail: What’s That Number Mean After The Name Of The Game?

It’s funny how things can sometimes come in waves, like the questions we’ve gotten this week about a certain set of numbers on our website. The numbers have been on the site for years and we haven’t changed their format, but for some reason, people noticed them this week and wondered what they mean.

I’m referring to the Remaining Prizes page on our website where we list prizes of $100 or more that are still up for grabs in our scratch, pull-tab and InstaPlay games. On that page, you can see the number of larger prizes that have been won and those that remain unclaimed. (The list is updated once daily, Monday through Friday.)

We list games alphabetically on that page but also include other details, such as the price per ticket and the game number. And it’s that number that apparently has people talking.

Our games have names like “$250,000 Riches” or “Black Ice,” but to keep track of them in our databases, each game also is assigned a number. So, $250,000 Riches is game No. 925 and Black Ice is game No. 302. It’s simply an identifying number for that particular game. It doesn’t signify anything else.

We list the game numbers on that page because we often have games with similar names, like these currently on the market: Cash In, Cash Lift and Cash Line. The game numbers help differentiate the details involved and help players easily find the information they’re seeking.

I’ve asked our Web Team to add an additional header on the page so it will be clear that they’re simply identifying game numbers, but in the meantime, this blog entry can answer the question!

What Happens To My Prize Payments If A Game Ends?

A player reached out to us on Facebook with an interesting question about prize payments when a game ends. The player wondered what would happen if a winner chooses the annuity option to receive prize payments over time, but the game involved ends before the final payment has been made.

The quick answer is that the prize payments would continue just as they had always been scheduled. That’s because the annuity payments are tied to that particular prize and the money comes from ticket sales at the time the prize is won. Prizes awarded are always honored.

In fact, we’re still making annuity payments for Iowa Lottery prizes won years ago – and the games involved are no longer for sale.

And to answer another frequent question when it comes to annuity payments: If a winner should pass away before the final annuity payment for his/her prize has been made, the prize money goes into that person’s estate.

When we receive word that a winner receiving annuity payments has died, that information is documented in the winner’s file. The lottery then makes payments to those listed in the terms of the winner’s estate or as determined by a court order. The lottery doesn’t get the money back -- it will be paid out according to the plans that the winner has made.

Check It Out: Touch-Screen Kiosks Sell Lotto, Scratch & InstaPlay Tickets

 

We did a Facebook Live demo for a sneak peek of them on Monday, and now here’s a video with a more detailed look at the lottery’s new touch-screen kiosks that are being installed in Iowa right now. For the first time, you as the customer can use the self-service kiosks to buy lotto, scratch and InstaPlay tickets on your own. You also can check your tickets at the kiosks, just like you can by using the self-checkers we’ve installed in nearly all of our retail locations. 

Our very first touch-screen kiosk was installed yesterday at Hy-Vee, 1700 Valley West Drive in West Des Moines. You’ll see more of them in the field as they continue to be installed statewide over the next couple months. The kiosks will be in our very biggest, busiest locations to give players there an additional way to buy tickets.

Check out the video above for a quick overview. Here are a few other details about the kiosks, in case you’re wondering: You can use a playslip at the kiosk. The playslip reader is just below the bill acceptor where you put money into the machine (you can see it in some of the video shots). You can redeem lottery coupons at the kiosk and the machine also can read the barcode on any ePlayslips you’ve created using the Iowa Lottery’s app available for both Android and Apple.      
 
We hope you like the new look and features of the kiosks!

Hot Lotto Game Ending, Last Drawing Will Be Saturday, Oct. 28

Earlier this summer, we updated our line-up of lotto games, and today we have another announcement: The Hot Lotto game will end this fall. The group of lotteries that sells the game has scheduled its final drawing for Saturday, Oct. 28.

Hot Lotto is a $1 game that offers Powerball-style play but with easier odds and jackpots starting at $1 million. It got its start back in April 2002 and is currently sold in Iowa and by 13 other U.S. lotteries. Those lotteries are working on plans for a new $1 draw game that will debut later this year.

You’ve heard us say before that as part of our business decisions, lotteries routinely replace existing games with newer offerings over time to keep our game selection fresh. That happens more often with scratch games than it does with lotto games, simply because it takes months if not years of planning and programming to bring about changes on the lotto side, like this decision to end the Hot Lotto game. Any game has a lifespan. And while Hot Lotto initially sold well and the game was updated a few times through the years to include new features, its sales have dropped down over time.

Iowa Lottery players have won eight jackpots in Hot Lotto through the years, including the largest prize offered in the game to date. That $19.97 million jackpot was won in January 2007 by John Hall of Indianola.

Lottery players in Iowa will have time to claim prizes won in Hot Lotto after the game ends. Prizes in Hot Lotto are valid in Iowa for up to 365 days from the date of the drawing in which they were won.

Also, please be aware that while you’ve been able to buy Hot Lotto plays for up to 10 drawings in advance here in Iowa, that number will gradually decrease as the end of the game approaches and the number of remaining drawings counts down.  

If there is any prize money in the jackpot pool that hasn't been awarded when the game ends, here in Iowa, we'll use our portion of that money as prizes in future lottery games and promotions, so it will go pay prizes.

We’re continuing to monitor our game offerings, so look for more announcements and changes in the coming months. We’re doing our best to have variety and choices for you as players.

Celebrations Aren't Just For Really Big Winners

Meeting our winners is a time to celebrate here at the lottery, and it’s always fun to hear their stories.

Last week, a Massachusetts man had an interesting story about how he ended up in Iowa buying a lottery ticket and winning $1,000!

Peter Martin of Leominster, Mass. (near Boston) told our Cedar Rapids team that he is traveling to South Dakota for the first time with a group of 28. They are headed to Sturgis, S.D. for the annual motorcycle rally that starts Aug. 4.

Along the way, Peter has purchased several souvenirs, including a hat, poncho and an inflatable swan. His souvenir from Iowa happened to be a “Black Ice” scratch ticket from Express Lane Gas & Food Mart, 4425 West Locust St. in Davenport, and that ticket ended up winning $1,000!

When he claimed his $1,000 prize July 27 at our regional office in Cedar Rapids he asked if he could get his photo taken (above) with some of the things he’s bought along the way. We of course said, "Yes!"

If you win the lottery, we hope to make your experience just as fun and memorable as Peter’s was last week.

Player Mail: Can I Claim A Ticket From Another State In Iowa?

As you’re out and about traveling this summer, here’s a quick reminder about where you can claim lottery tickets.

We heard from a man in Georgia earlier this week asking if he could claim the prize he won on an Iowa Lottery scratch ticket at his local lottery retailer in that state. The quick answer is no. Here’s why:

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

There’s an enormous amount of technology that goes into running a lottery today, and each state lottery has its own computer system to track the tickets it sells. Because each state lottery individually tracks its tickets, sales and prizes, the computer systems involved are independent from each other. That means the equipment here in Iowa can’t read tickets from out of 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 purchased your ticket about the details in that regard.

Safe travels this summer! And good luck on any lottery tickets you buy along the way!