Someone who bought a Hot Lotto ticket in Iowa is a multi-million dollar winner. The ticket for Saturday’s drawing, purchased at a Kwik Stop in Waterloo, matched all six numbers drawn for a jackpot of $7.54 million. Mary Neubauer is a spokeswoman for the Iowa Lottery. “Iowa is definitely on a roll in Hot Lotto. The state has now had three jackpot winners in that game just within the last 12 months,” Neubauer said.
The other Hot Lotto jackpots in Iowa recently involved more than $9 million won in May in Webster City and a $16.5 million winner in Des Moines last December. That Des Moines ticket is still unclaimed.
Iowa Lottery players have won nine jackpots in the Hot Lotto game since it was introduced in 2002. That’s the highest number of jackpot winners among the 15 states that offer Hot Lotto.
Neubauer said the owner of the winning ticket purchased in Waterloo has yet to come forward. That could happen soon, but it means there are now three big, unclaimed lottery prizes in Iowa. The others include the $16.5 million dollar Hot Lotto ticket purchased in Des Moines last December and a $1 million Powerball prize sold in Ottumwa in July.
The prizes expire after one year, so the $16.5 million prize winner has until December 29 to come forward with the winning ticket. The ticket was purchased at Quik Trip, 4801 NE 14th St. in Des Moines. The $1 million-winning Powerball ticket was sold at Kum & Go, 1317 E. Mary St. in Ottumwa. The $7.54 million-winning Hot Lotto ticket from this Saturday was purchased at Kwik Stop, 4335 Texas St. in Waterloo.