Muncie Times,Muncie, Delaware County, 3 June 1993
Page 29
The Muncie Times, Thursday, 3 June 1993, Page 29 In 3 years, Lotto Cash sells $403.8 million in tickets, pays out $208.7 million in prizes
INDIANAPOLIS—The Hoosier Lottery is celebrating the third anniversary of its popularLottoCash game with a statewide relaunch aimed at reacquainting players and retailers with the jackpot game. The first Lotto Cash ticket was sold on May 1, 1990. Since then, sales in the game have totaled $403.8 million, and $208.7 million in prizes has been awarded. It is the Hoosier Lottery's most popular individual game, accounting for about 27 percent of all sales. "Lotto Cash is our flagship game, and the one ele-
ment other than the Hoosier Millionaire game show that is most identified with the Hoosier Lottery," Executive Director Many Gibbs said. The game has produced 44 millionaires in its history. Three of the millionaires have been out-of-state residents (two from Kentucky, one from Michigan). The most popular feature of Lotto Cash is its all-cash, lump-sum payout, which is unique among U.S. lotteries. Indiana is the only state that pays its entire announced jackpot in one lump sum. Most lotteries pay the jackpot over
20 years, while some offer a current-value, lump-sum payout that amounts to just over half of the announced jackpot. "Although LottoCash has a very loyal following, I don't think our players fully realize how much extra benefit they receive by getting their prize in one lump sum," said Gibbs. "A Lotto Cash jackpot of $5 million would be comparable in cash value to a $10 million jackpot paid over 20 years. And our players have the added benefit of getting their money all at once." The largest jackpot ever won in the Lotto Cash game
was $14 million, which went to Andrew and Anna Fagg of Terra Haute in the Feb. 27, 1993, drawing. The $14 million payout was the single largest payout ever by a U.S. lottery. Lotto Cash has a 6/44 matrix with odds of 1:7.1 million. Players pick six numbers from a field of 44 and can pick their own numbers or let the computer pick them. Anywhere from 60 to 80 percent of all winning tickets are made by the computer. These are called "quick-
picks." Players can also win prizes by matching four or five of the winning numbers. Matchfour prizes average around $50, while match-five prizes average around $1,000. The prizes are parimutuel, based on predetermined percentages of the prize pool: 72 percent to the jackpotprize, 7 percent for matchfive prizes, 15 percent for match-four prizes and 6 percent to fund the Hoosier Millionaire game show prizes.
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^ "The well-being of mankind, its peace and security are unattainable unless and until its unity is firmly established." —Baha'u'llah
Come Join the 2nd Annual i Walk for Unity Sunday, June 13,2 p.m. Courthouse Plaza, Muncie, Indiana
For further information, contact Rebecca Burkart, 286-4712. Sponsored by the Baha'i Community of Muncie.
