HUGE WEEKEND FOR LOTTERY PLAYERS IN ALBERTA!

WINNIPEG, Nov. 15 /CNW/ - In one 24-hour period, two giant lottery jackpots were won by tickets purchased in Alberta. Friday night's LOTTO MAX Jackpot was worth more than $22 million and Saturday's LOTTO 6/49 Jackpot was more than $16 million. Both Jackpots were won by single tickets purchased in Alberta, but not in either Edmonton or Calgary. And if that wasn't enough - two of the three second prize winning tickets on LOTTO MAX came from Alberta, too! That's well over $38 million in prizes!

"LOTTO MAX is a very popular game in Alberta. Roughly 14% of all tickets for this national game are sold in that province," said Andrea Marantz of Western Canada Lottery Corporation. Western Canada Lottery Corporation includes the provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, and the territories of Yukon, Nunavut and Northwest Territories.

Still, for winning tickets to both big national lottery games to have been sold in the same province for the same weekend's draws is quite unusual.

"When the wins come so close together it can certainly appear that Alberta is a particularly lucky piece of real estate and it's fun to think there must be something in the water," Marantz joked. "But we find that, over time, winning tickets and population statistics match up pretty closely."

Still, millions of dollars flowing into the province can create good fortune beyond the winners. Lottery winners tend to spread their wealth among their families, give generously to their communities, and support local economies. Western Canada Lottery Corporation's research shows that lottery winners in the region do not make drastic changes in their lives, and tend to report the strongest effect of a lottery win is the freedom from worry over financial matters.

LOTTO 6/49 will be drawn again on Wednesday for a $20 million Jackpot, while Friday's LOTTO MAX Jackpot will be $10 million.

For further information: Andrea Marantz, [phone]