Starting next week, Nebraska gamblers can place even more bets on Sundays.
Nebraska Lottery will begin offering its three homegrown lotteries -- Nebraska Pick 5, Nebraska Pick 3 and MyDay -- seven days a week. The games were previously available for play Monday through Saturday.
Nebraska Lottery has considered the expansion for years, with the move in its business plan since 2008, Lottery spokesman Neil Watson said. Nebraska’s is one of just four lotteries in the U.S. that didn’t have daily drawings.
“From our perspective, it’s something that was a very simple change to do,†Watson said. “It will be more convenient for players, and for retailers, it should increase the traffic coming into the store.â€
The move to daily drawings is expected to generate an additional $1.5 million in annual ticket sales, and should raise $360,000 more per year for Nebraska Lottery’s beneficiaries: the environment, education, the state fair and compulsive gambling assistance.
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“And that’s a conservative estimate,†Watson said.
Until now, Nebraskans have had just one state-level lottery available on Sunday, the 2by2 game offered here and in Kansas and North Dakota.
The three new Sunday offerings are specific to Nebraska.
* Nebraska Pick 5 sold nearly $12.4 million in $1 plays last fiscal year. Users select five numbers; jackpots start at $50,000 and increase by $4,000 if nobody wins. (The jackpot reached a record $300,000 in 2002 after 51 drawings without a winner.)
* Nebraska Pick 3 sold nearly $4.7 million in $1 plays last fiscal year. Users choose three numbers -- the same number three times, if they want -- for a chance to win $600. Of all lotto games offered, it offers the best odds of winning, Watson said -- about one in 1,000.
* MyDay sold nearly $1.8 million in $1 plays last fiscal year. The game was created because so many lottery players pick important dates, like birthdays and anniversaries. Users choose a month, date and year for a chance at a top prize of $5,000.
The numbers for all three are drawn in Lincoln with a random number generator, Watson said.
To prepare for the switch, Nebraska Lottery will shut down its computer system from 9 p.m. Saturday to 6 a.m. Sunday, meaning no tickets can be sold and no prizes awarded.