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Today, Eric Hagler, executive director of the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery (ASL), announced that a brand-new draw game called LOTTO is launching next week. Ticket sales will begin Sunday for the first drawing on Sept. 21.
LOTTO – with a starting jackpot of $250,000 – will only be played and won in Arkansas. Drawings will be held at 9 p.m. in Little Rock every Wednesday and Saturday. Each play will cost $2. As with any lottery product, a player must be at least 18 years old to purchase a ticket.
“We are extremely excited to offer LOTTO to the people of Arkansas,” Hagler said. “Our research indicated that Arkansas players wanted a game with higher starting jackpots that was exclusive to our state, and that’s exactly what we are giving them.”
Hagler said having a game with a six-figure jackpot is motivating, with many players feeling that a win of that value could be life-changing.
Hagler said LOTTO has the potential to create millionaires each year and will increase funding for scholarships since more money from draw game sales go to proceeds for the lottery’s beneficiary.
The game will differ from Powerball® and Mega Millions® in that it will be exclusive to Arkansas, and it will feature a Bonus Number. A player will pick six numbers from 1 to 40 to play. Seven numbers are drawn. Six main numbers and a bonus number. If the player matches the first six numbers (main numbers) drawn in any order, they win the jackpot. Players who match the Bonus Number will increase any non-jackpot prizes.
Each drawing the jackpot is not won, the amount increases for the next one based on the sales of the game. When the jackpot is won by matching the first six numbers drawn, it is reset to $250,000 for the next drawing.
The Bonus Number will be drawn at the same time as the six main numbers from the same pool of 40 numbers. It gives players who have matched five, four or three of the six main numbers a chance to win an even better prize. For example, if a player matching five main numbers plus the Bonus Number, he wins $25,000.
Both winning and non-winning tickets will be eligible to enter in The Club for Points for Prizes®.
The last draw game added to the lottery’s inventory was Lucky for Life in January of 2015. The Natural State Jackpot launched in August of 2012.
For more information, go to MyArkansasLottery.com/LOTTO.
