LE CLAIRE WOMAN WINS $31,000 LOTTERY PRIZE

Becky Braet Wins Several Prizes Playing the Lottery's Pick 4 Game

DES MOINES, Iowa – A Le Claire woman won several prizes totaling $31,000 playing the Iowa Lottery's Pick 4 game.

Becky Braet won three prizes on one ticket totaling $9,500 in the October 27 midday drawing of Iowa's Pick 4 game. She also won five prizes totaling $21,500 on a second ticket purchased for the same drawing.

The winning numbers that day were: 1-0-1-0. Braet bought each set of the winning tickets in different places. She bought her first set of winning tickets at QC Mart, 1402 State St. in Bettendorf, and then stopped at Kwik Shop, 3129 Rockingham in Davenport, to purchase the second set.

Pick 4, which has been offered in Iowa since September 2003, features a top prize of $30,000, with odds of just 1:10,000 of winning it. Another intriguing aspect of the game comes in the variety of ways players can choose to play it. Plays in Pick 4 range from 50 cents to $5 for the chance to match a four-digit combination of numbers from 0000 to 9999.

There are several ways to win in Pick 4. A player can choose a straight play, meaning that if the winning numbers are 1-2-3-4, the player wins a prize for matching that combination exactly: 1-2-3-4. Another option is to choose a box play, which allows players to win for matching the winning numbers, but not in the exact order drawn (if the winning numbers are 1-2-3-4, you can win for a combination of those numbers, such as 4-3-2-1). You also can choose a straight/box play, which allows you to win for matching the numbers in the exact order drawn or in any order.

Pick 4 drawings are held Monday-Saturday. The game's midday drawings are at 12:40 p.m. with evening drawings at 9:20 p.m.

Winning numbers may be checked at the lottery Web site at www.ialottery.com or through the winning numbers' hot line at (515) 323-4633. Winning numbers may also be checked with lottery retail outlets or by calling the lottery at (515) 725-7900 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday.

Since the Iowa Lottery's start in 1985, its players have won more than $2.4 billion in prizes while the lottery has raised nearly $1.2 billion for state programs.