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'Big Game' Drawing Draws Near, Jackpot Climbs

Aired May 5, 2000 - 1:04 p.m. ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

ANDRIA HALL, CNN ANCHOR: Jobs, stocks, interest rates, they won't much matter to whoever wins tonight's "Big Game" drawing, now worth an estimated $230 million. "Big Game" fever has reached epidemic proportions in the seven states that participate, even though the odds against winning are almost as mind-boggling as the jackpot.

CNN's Bill Delaney met some big spenders in Hoboken, New Jersey.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BILL DELANEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It wasn't that the line for lottery tickets at a newsstand by the subway station in Hoboken, New Jersey, was all that long, usually about a 15-minute or so wait. A lot longer, after all, were the odds against actually winning the "Big Game," 76 million to one.

Still, Tom Dobias loaded up, $900 worth.

TOM DOBIAS, "BIG GAME" PLAYER: I was the gopher, I went for a lot of friends. My wife works at a hospital, I got some for her. A lot of friends in the neighborhood and, you know, I figured why not take a day off and have some fun.

DELANEY: Because in New York, just across the Hudson River, there were no "Big Game" tickets for sale. With similar border crossings common in the seven states taking part in the lottery, along with New Jersey, Georgia, Michigan, Massachusetts, Maryland, Illinois, and Virginia.

As for critics, who say what amounts to state-sponsored gambling is a bad idea:

REBECCA PAUL, PRES. GEORGIA LOTTERY: To play responsibly, have fun. Remember it's just a game and don't bet the house on it.

DELANEY: In Hoboken, most purchases were modest, in the $3 or $4 range, though Jonathan Richards bought in all, $170 worth for 30 co- workers.

JONATHAN RICHARDS, "BIG GAME" PLAYER; You got to be in it to win it and I'm here to be in it, so hopefully I can win it.

DELANEY: The biggest jackpot ever was the $300 million 13 Ohio construction workers split in 1998. (on camera): Should anyone win the big game, they'll have two rather pleasant options to contemplate: taking an immediate, lump-sum payment of more than $100 million, or taking more than $220 million in installments, amounting to at least 8 1/2 million pretax dollars every year for 26 years.

Bill Delaney, CNN, Hoboken, New Jersey.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: Well, good luck.

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