Anoka Co. Hot Lotto Winner Has Yet To Claim Prize
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – We all feel like we hit the jackpot with Sunday's weather, but somebody in Minnesota did more than that.
They literally hit the jackpot.
A winning ticket for Saturday night's Hot Lotto drawing came from somewhere in Anoka County.
We don't know the store yet, but we do know the jackpot was big more than $11-million.
So our Kate Raddatz went looking for ticket buyers to hunt down the winner.
Richard Marschalk has been buying lotto tickets for 25 years.
"Every week, every day I play one or the other," Marschalk said.
He's always hoped he'd have the big winning ticket.
Including the $11.7 million Hot Lotto jackpot ticket that was sold in Anoka county.
"Isn't that the one where you get the whole thing? They don't take any taxes out you get the $11.7? That would be wonderful," he said.
"The multi-state lottery, who organizes the game, pays the mandatory minimum withholding tax. So our winner will get a check for over 11.7 million dollars," Ed Van Petten, executive director of the Minnesota State Lottery, said.
While the Hot Lotto tickets are sold in all the same stores as Powerball tickets, the buyers are less common.
It's sold in 16 states.
Minnesota sold just under $200 thousand worth of tickets this round.
"Comparison sales are it'd probably about a fifth of that sales that what we have with Powerball," Van Petten said.
The last time the winning Hot Lotto jackpot ticket was sold in Minnesota was in March 2012. This winning ticket will not only be the 11th to win in Minnesota, but also the largest.
So even if you aren't 11 point 7 million dollars richer this time.
Maybe just one more try will be the ticket.
"I'm gonna get lucky someday," Marschalk said.