From Unlucky to Lucky Times Ten!

Winning a Ohio Lottery game is all about luck, and Tina Garnett of Hilliard had enough with luck. She wasn’t having any.

Thursday she was expressing her frustration to a clerk at a Columbus area Speedway, and sales rep Randy Daugherty was there. Tina told the clerk she never wins. Tina asked Randy to touch her Pick 3/Pick 4 Play it Again tickets for luck. Randy thought nothing of it, and he reached over and touched the ticket.

Tina Garnett thought she was unlucky, but it turns out she's Lucky Times Ten!

While he was busy in the back working with the store manager, he heard loud screams coming from the front of the store where the Win Station is located. Guess who won? Tina bought a Lucky Times Ten ticket and won $5,500! 

I’m not sure Randy has the magic touch since he didn’t touch Tina’s instant ticket, but it’s fun to see a player’s luck turn around regardless!

Congratulations, Tina!

Ticket to Shop!

I have a feeling that HHGregg has seen its share of Ohio Lottery players in the last few days, because many of the winners of our Trick Out Your Cave promotion are now holding gift cards to the electronics and appliance store!

Last week we held the drawing for the winners, and since Thursday they have been stopping at Ohio Lottery offices across the state to claim their prizes!

Jon McCarthy of Delaware won the Trick Out Your Cave grand prize

Jon McCarthy of Delaware won the $10,000 grand prize.  Jon says Keno is his favorite game and with good reason. He says he has won six out of six a few times and five out of five over a dozen times. He bought the ticket that landed him the Trick Out Your Cave grand prize at Wedgewood Pub in Powell. 

“I was driving in the mountains on my way back to Ohio when I got the call. I was shocked, and at first I thought it was a joke! It took over 50 miles for me to realize it was for real!” Jon says.

That ten grand will go a long way. Jon says he plans to buy some gifts and items for his home that he wouldn’t normally splurge on with his gift card. 

Jon wasn’t the only winner in our big Keno promotion!

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Five players won $2,000 gift cards, 20 won $1,000 gift cards and ten walked away with $500 gift cards to hhgregg. Our winners had plans to buy everything from iPods to computers to new TVs!

Congratulations to our cave men and women!

Red Ball is Back!

We have a lot of loyal Ohio Lottery players, and our Pick 3 players are among the most loyal. So, as a way to say thank you we’re bringing Red Ball back!

For five weeks starting January 29, 2012, Pick 3 players can boost their prize by 20% in both the midday and evening drawings!

Here’s how Red Ball works! The Lottery places seven balls, one red and six white, into a special Red Ball drawing machine. Once the Pick 3 numbers are drawn, the Lottery will draw from the Red Ball machine. If the white ball is drawn, Pick 3 players who match the numbers win the standard prize. The white ball is removed, improving the odds of drawing the red ball for the next drawing.

When the red ball is drawn, Pick 3 winners receive about 20% more when they cash their ticket. After the red ball is drawn, all of the balls are returned to the drawing machine for the next drawing. If the red ball isn’t drawn in six consecutive draws, it’s an automatic Red Ball bonus for Pick 3 winners that drawing.

It’s a fun bonus that could put some extra winnings in players’ pockets!

More Food, More Fun!

I’m really proud of our Cash Explosion fans! They’re on pace to exceed last year’s food donations to Ohio’s Second Harvest Foodbanks.

Cash Explosion Producer JC Carothers and Community Outreach Coordinator Karen Russo make the second delivery of 540 pounds of food to the Cleveland Foodbank.

During the month of December, Cash Explosion fans donated 540 pounds of non-perishable food items! That’s 40 pounds more than what we collected in November! Cash Explosion producer James Carothers and Community Outreach Coordinator Karen Russo had the honor of delivering the food to the Cleveland Foodbank.

In January, the donations got even bigger! We collected 585 pounds of food that was donated to the Mid-Ohio Foodbank.

Dawn McNichols with the Mid-Ohio Foodbank and Ron Stills of the Ohio Lottery's Sales Division stand next to 585 pounds of donated food.

Cash Explosion fans can continue to bring non-perishable food items to any Cash Explosion taping through the month of May. In the coming months we will be dropping off donations at Ohio’s Second Harvest Foodbanks throughout the state.

Winner ready to Trick Out His Cave!

Tom's ready to Trick Out His Cave with a $2,000 gift card from hhgregg.

Tom Reed of Valley View was online looking to see if the Ohio Lottery had posted the list of winners for the Trick Out Your Cave promotion that just ended Jan. 15.  Not a second after he started surfing, he got a call from an employee of the Ohio Lottery telling him he had won an hhgregg gift card.

He came down to the Ohio Lottery’s headquarters the very same day.  He knows he wants to buy an iPod.  Between himself and his girlfriend, Amy, he knows he’ll think of something for the rest!

He’s a regular patron of Towne Tavern in North Royalton, and that’s where he played Keno and took advantage of the Trick Out Your Cave promotion.  Check back Jan. 21 to see the complete list of winners: http://www.ohiolottery.com/Promotions/Online-Contests/Trick-Out-Your-Cave/Enter-the-Contest