Dubuque County Restaurant Owner Wins Big InstaPlay Prize
Brian Schroeder Claims Big Prize in InstaPlay Lottery Game
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CLIVE, Iowa — A Dubuque County restaurant owner bought an InstaPlay lottery ticket for the first time and won a prize of more than $20,000.
"I've never played the game in my life," Brian Schroeder said on Thursday as he claimed his prize at the lottery's Cedar Rapids office. "First time."
His jackpot win of $20,467.70 in the "Cherry Twist Progressive" InstaPlay game came on a ticket he bought at Silker's, 101 W. Main St. in Epworth. Schroeder, who owns Bill's Tap in nearby Farley, had stopped at the store to buy groceries for his restaurant. After completing his transaction, a comment from Larry Silker, one of the store's co-owners, prompted Schroeder to buy a ticket.
"I was buying their meats over there to get our restaurant back open," said Schroeder, 57. "I just happened to have like $2.03 left and he asked if I wanted a chance on a $2 ticket. I said, 'What's that?'"
The Cherry Twist Progressive game features a jackpot that starts at $2,000 and increases with every ticket sold statewide until it's won. The jackpot had been climbing for more than a month before Schroeder won.
"I had to look at the ticket three or four times," he said. "I couldn't believe it."
Schroeder, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., said he plans to put part of his winnings toward some fishing trips down south. But he has a more immediate purchase in mind for Silker, who sold him the ticket.
"He said it couldn't have happened to a better person," Schroeder said. "Now I owe him a steak dinner!"
The InstaPlay product combines features from instant-scratch and lotto games. InstaPlay tickets are called "scratchless" because they have no security coating that needs to be removed to determine the prize won. And rather than having supplies of tickets printed in advance like those in traditional scratch and pull-tab games, InstaPlay tickets are printed on demand from the lottery terminal.
InstaPlay games range in price from $1 to $30. For more information, visit www.ialottery.com.
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