LANSING, May 25, 1999 – On the heels of the record-setting $197 million jackpot last month, The Big Game adds another page to its history books with the addition of New Jersey as a Big Game state. The Garden State begins ticket sales tomorrow, just in time for Friday’s (May 28) drawing!
The addition of New Jersey brings to seven the number of participating Big Game states. Current states include Michigan, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts and Virginia.
"This is great news for Big Game fans here in Michigan and throughout the country," said Michigan Lottery Commissioner Don Gilmer. "It means more access for those who’d like to try their luck with The Big Game, and will likely mean higher jackpots that roll more quickly because the population base is that much larger.
"We extend a warm welcome to New Jersey Lottery staff and players and look forward to lots of winning!"
The Big Game offers a minimum jackpot of $5 million and conducts drawings every Tuesday and Friday at 11 p.m. (Eastern). There are nine ways to win cash prizes, with overall odds of approximately 1 in 31.
To play The Big Game, players choose five numbers from a pool of 50 and one number – the Big Money Ball number – from a pool of 36. To win the jackpot, players must match all five numbers and the Big Money Ball number. The odds to win the jackpot are roughly 1 in 76 million.
The Big Game’s first drawing was conducted September 6, 1996. To date, Big Game players in all participating states have won hundreds of millions of dollars in cash prizes. There have been 35 jackpot winners, with six of those being awarded to Michigan Lottery players!
BIG GAME PARTICIPATING STATES
State: New Jersey
Population: 8 million
Lottery Director: Virginia E. Haines
Year Lottery Founded: 1970
Total Sales Since Lottery’s Inception: $22 billion
Profits Since Inception: $8.1 billion
State: Michigan
Population: 9.7 million
Lottery Director: Don Gilmer
Year Lottery Founded: 1972
Total Sales Since Lottery’s Inception: $21.7 billion
Profits Since Inception: $8.6 billion
State: Illinois
Population: 11.9 million
Lottery Director: Lori Montana
Year Lottery Founded: 1974
Total Sales Since Lottery’s Inception: $23.8 billion
Profits Since Inception: $9 billion
State: Maryland
Population: 5.1 million
Lottery Director: Buddy Roogow
Year Lottery Founded: 1973
Total Sales Since Lottery’s Inception: $15.4 billion
Profits Since Inception: $5.9 billion
State: Massachusetts
Population: 6.1 million
Lottery Director: Edward Lashman
Year Lottery Founded: 1972
Total Sales Since Lottery’s Inception: $29.9 billion
Profits Since Inception: $8.8 billion
State: Virginia
Population: 6.7 million
Lottery Director: Penelope W. Kyle
Year Lottery Founded: 1988
Total Sales Since Lottery’s Inception: $7.9 billion
Profits Since Inception: $2.7 billion
State: Georgia
Population: 7.5 million
Lottery Director: Rebecca Paul
Year Lottery Founded: 1993
Total Sales Since Lottery’s Inception: $7.6 billion
Profits Since Inception: $2.8 billion
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