Lottery Announces Easy 5 Sales Start on Sept. 16
Prizes can be won for matching as few as two numbers, and the overall odds of winning a prize are 1 in 8. The odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 435,897.
The first Easy 5 drawing will occur Sept. 19, with subsequent drawings every Wednesday and Saturday evenings, like Powerball and Lotto, the Lottery's other two draw-style jackpot games. To be eligible, tickets must be purchased by 9:30 p.m. on the night of the drawing.
With the launch of Easy 5, the Lottery will also unveil a new instant-win feature, ezmatch, available as an add-on option to Easy 5 tickets for an additional $1 per play. When the ezmatch option is purchased, the Lottery's terminal will print five ezmatch numbers in a column on the player's Easy 5 ticket along with corresponding instant prize amounts for each number. Instant prizes of up to $250 can be won for each ezmatch number that matches an Easy 5 number on the ticket. The ezmatch option will be available for a limited time.
"We're excited about adding a new jackpot game with great overall odds of winning a prize and believe our players will be, too," said Lottery President Rose Hudson. "Easy 5 has a fun, easy play style. And with the new ezmatch feature, players have the chance to win now and later."
With the introduction of Easy 5, the Lottery will end sales for another draw-style game, Cash Quest, on Saturday, Sept. 15 at 9:30 p.m., with the final drawing to occur that evening. Drawings are currently held five days a week, Monday through Saturday.
The Lottery launched Cash Quest in October 1998. Sales for the game were $4.2 million during fiscal year 2007, or about 1.4 percent of the Lottery's total sales.
