Ever since it officially launched the Classic Lotto game in 2007, the Ohio Lottery has recorded 27 jackpot wins. The last one, which is yet to be claimed, was announced last week, thanks to one lucky ticket bought in Butler County.
$1.4 Million Waiting to be Redeemed
The fortunate player who made the purchase at Don’s Carry Out in Darrtown triggered the third jackpot in an impressive trio of these Classic Lotto jackpots to be won in a single month. This in itself is a very rare occurrence, with the odds of winning the jackpot announced as 1 in 13,983,816.
It only took five more draws for the 27th jackpot to be hit following the 26th jackpot on April 22. The latter came seven drafts after the 25th jackpot was recorded on April 5.
While most people would probably come running in a heartbeat to claim the massive wins, Ohio Lottery’s spokesperson Marie Kilbane informed the public that just one of the three jackpots has been so far claimed.
Six Months to Claim the Winning Lotto Tickets
Winners are given a total of 180 days since the draw took place to claim any winning tickets. Failing to claim a win will result in the jackpot being redirected to schools in the Buckeye State, which is what happens to all profits recorded by state lotteries here.
While Kilbane said that there was still time for the other two jackpot winners to come forward, he also expressed his confidence that “someone has been alerted to the fact that there has been a winner here.“
The representative added that the Ohio Lottery usually takes pride in its good rate of winners claiming their jackpots, expressive hope to see a continuation of this track record.
Don’s Carry Out owner, Eric Beckett, explained that his family shop has been flooded with customers since the news of the massive jackpot became public. Beckett added that the big news generated “a lot of buzz around town,” with many people walking into his store just to inquire about the event which rarely happens in small towns like Darrtown.
In an interview he gave to the Journal-News, the shop owner further explained that while a small number of his clients are passers-by, most of his business comes from the locals which he mostly knows by name and which he hopes would come forward to claim the jackpot by October.
After a minimum 24% federal government tax and a 4% state tax will be applied to the amount that was won, an estimated $614,880 net cash payout would reach the winner’s pockets in case they would opt for a cash lump sum.
In case they would opt for annual payments, they would receive a $1,008,000 net annuity payout out of the total $1.4 million won.
In similar news, two Mega Millions jackpots were hit in less than a week in New York, with a lucky player winning a $483 million jackpot at the end of April, followed by another Mega Millions jackpot drop of approximately $20 million announced shortly after.