POWERBALL JACKPOT CLIMBS AS STATEWIDE TRAVEL INITIATIVE APPROACHES FOURTH WEEK

Jackpot Climbs To An Estimated $192 Million For Saturday; Special Travel Offers Continue For Powerball Players In Iowa

DES MOINES, Iowa – The Powerball® jackpot has climbed to an estimated $192 million for Saturday's drawing as the statewide travel initiative from the Lottery and Tourism Office continues to give players the chance to use some of their tickets in the game to receive special savings.

The Powerball jackpot was last won in the drawing on April 8 and has been growing since that time. The $144 million prize that night was won in Washington, D.C.

Iowa Lottery CEO Terry Rich reminded players Friday that nonwinning Powerball tickets in Iowa can be used to receive special offers from attractions and businesses around the state.

"We can all get out and play in our state and receive a good value while we're at it," he said.

The Iowa Speedway in Newton is the current featured attraction in the latest round of money-saving offers in the "Keep Your Powerball Ticket Handy" summer travel campaign and the next round of offers will feature the PZAZZ! FunCity entertainment complex in Burlington. The idea behind the initiative is to encourage people to travel the state, go to Iowa attractions and businesses and give the entire state a boost in these tough economic times.

The Iowa Speedway currently is making a buy one, get one offer on $60 tickets to the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series on Sept. 5. Consumers will receive one free ticket to the race with the purchase of a $60 ticket. The speedway is a state-of-the-art 7/8-mile race track and motorsports facility. The track is owned and operated by U.S. Motorsport Corp. and was designed by famed NASCAR champion Rusty Wallace.

To take advantage of the offer, Iowa Powerball players who have a nonwinning ticket from Wednesday's drawing (May 20) can log onto the lottery Web site at www.ialottery.com, print off a coupon there, attach the nonwinning ticket and then present the coupon to the participating business to receive the special deal.

Powerball ticket holders must use one ticket per coupon, or select which offer they wish to use.

Then on Sunday, a new round of offers will begin for players who have tickets from the Powerball drawing on Saturday (May 23). The featured attraction in the next round will be the PZAZZ! FunCity entertainment complex in Burlington, which will offer Iowa Powerball players $20 savings on a $40 fun card to the entertainment complex. Other special offers also are being made in the campaign, so players can visit the lottery’s Web site to find out how they can use their nonwinning Powerball tickets to receive them.

Reminder To Sign Your Tickets, Get Receipt

Joe Diaz, the Iowa Lottery's vice president of security, said the size of the current Powerball jackpot serves as an important reminder for players about how important it is that they sign their tickets and check the receipts available for all lottery tickets that are checked or cashed in Iowa.

"A signature on a lottery ticket identifies it as belonging to the person who has signed it," Diaz said. "That provides protection and avoids confusion for all those involved in the validation process. Consumers should protect themselves by signing their tickets and asking for receipts for all tickets that they have checked or cashed."

About the Powerball Jackpot

Powerball jackpot winners can choose to receive their prizes as a lump-sum payment or in annuitized annual payments. Saturday's cash option amount is $99.8 million. The largest Powerball jackpot in the history of the game was $365 million. That prize was won in February 2006 by eight co-workers at a meat-packing plant in Nebraska.

Iowa Jackpot Winners

Iowa Lottery players have claimed six Powerball jackpots:

• Ed Brown of Washington split a $10.4 million jackpot with a woman from Missouri in December 1992.
• Tim Schultz of Des Moines won $28 million in February 1999.
• The Larry Hasken family of Sabula claimed a $31.8 million jackpot in January 2000.
• Jacquelyn Moore of Omaha, Neb., won $14.4 million in October 2004. (She bought her ticket at a convenience store in Carter Lake in western Iowa.)
• Hugh Hawkins of Des Moines claimed a $113.2 million jackpot in December 2005.
• Tim & Kellie Guderian of Fort Dodge claimed a $200.8 million jackpot in October 2006.

Powerball History

Sales in the Powerball game began on April 19, 1992. Today, Powerball tickets are sold in Iowa, 29 other states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Powerball jackpots start at a guaranteed $20 million. Players choose five numbers from a pool of 59 numbers and another number -- the Powerball -- from a pool of 39. Plays cost $1 and drawings are at 9:59 p.m. on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Players who purchase the Power Play for an additional $1 can multiply their winnings (except for the jackpot) by up to five times the amount.