$30,000 LOTTERY TICKET SOLD IN COUNCIL BLUFFS

Mary Newell Wins Top Prize Playing the "Crossword" Scratch Game

DES MOINES, Iowa – A $30,000 "Crossword" scratch ticket was sold in Council Bluffs, Iowa to an Omaha, Neb. woman.

Mary Newell claimed her prize Friday at the Iowa Lottery's regional office in Council Bluffs. She bought her winning ticket at Pilot Travel Centers, 2647 South 24th St. in Council Bluffs.

Crossword is a $3 scratch game. Players win a prize by uncovering at least three complete words in the ticket's puzzle. If a player uncovers 10 words, he/she wins $30,000. The overall odds of winning in the game are about 1 in 4.

Seventeen prizes of $30,000 are still up for grabs in Crossword as well as 24 prizes of $3,000, more than 390 prizes of $300 and more than 1,880 prizes of $100.

Since the Iowa Lottery's start in 1985, its players have won more than $2.4 billion in prizes while the lottery has raised more than $1.2 billion for state programs.