But instant games have smaller profit margins for the state and new offerings have performed up to nearly 70 percent below budget, according to unaudited figures included in the lottery company's monthly report.

Last month it rolled out the keno-style Quick Draw game in several hundred bars and restaurants, where players can bet on games every five minutes. Under Northstar, the lottery has turned increasingly to scratch-off and other instant games to bolster its bottom line as sales in big-jackpot games such as Mega Millions fall short of expectations. But the launch caused a blackout that blocked nearly half the state's retailers from printing regular draw games such as Pick-3 and Powerball.

In August 2015, with big-jackpot game sales lagging, the lottery rolled out a new series of 'Fast Play' games with instant results designed to attract new players. The lottery website says that 4,368,360 million tickets for High Card Poker were printed, but Drucker said just about 25 percent of the 'intended print run' was sent to retailers for the launch. The confusion over the game rules abruptly diverted resources last week as workers traveled around the state gathering tickets and using black marker to cross out advertisements for the new game. Chalet did not return a message seeking comment. She said that all winning tickets in circulation will be honored, and that more than 42,796 tickets were claimed by players totaling more than $583,000. But the directions on the scratch-off do not consider a tie.ĭrucker said that the 'article is inaccurate,' but declined to elaborate. In that scenario, Chalet would have the winning hand since a jack trumps a 10.

If the player and dealer in a real poker game have the same high card, the second-highest card would break the tie, according to. One player, Robert Chalet, told the news site that he thought he had a winning hand with the $150,000 grand prize, but when he went to cash in was told, 'You won and you didn't win.' Chalet, of Bloomfield, had a hand of 5-6-9-J-Q, while the dealer held 4-6-7-10-Q, according to the news site.

High card poker scratcher winner