Schenectady, NY – Kevan Locke of Rotterdam, Schenectady County, beat the odds the second time around; winning a $1,000,000 lottery prize from a Deal Or No Deal scratch-off ticket as part of a second-chance promotion co-sponsored by the New York Lottery, 19 other state lotteries, and MDI Entertainment, a subsidiary of Scientific Games, Corp. (NASDAQ: SGMS), a Lottery instant ticket printer.

Players scratching off non-winning Deal or No Deal instant tickets, inspired by the popular television game show hosted by Howie Mandel, were invited to enter an online sweepstakes contest for a “second chance” to win a host of different prizes including a trip to Hollywood to see the show and chance at a bonus prize of $1,000,000.

“Whoever said you can’t have a second chance to make a first impression might want to try their luck at this game,” said the 38-year-old married father of one who owns his own candy vending route serving the Capital Region. “I thought I’d plunk down a few bucks on a ticket and maybe scratch off a cash prize, but if not, at least take a shot at a second chance to win a trip to Hollywood to see the show. But a million bucks, that’s a deal of a lifetime,” Locke said.

Locke and his wife Jennifer, 37, a second-grade teacher in Selkirk, said the money will provide a nice cushion for them to save for their family’s future. He will receive his prize as a one-time payment totaling $681,500 after required state and federal taxes are withheld.

The Deal Or No Deal instant game provided Lottery players in 20 states with an opportunity to enter their non-winning tickets into an on-line promotion; giving them a second chance to win a variety of prizes including a trip to Hollywood to appear on the Deal Or No Deal game show and ultimately a chance at $1,000,000 in cash as part of a final multi-state drawing held on September 17, 2008.

Locke’s “lucky break” came more than a year after the father of one purchased his original Deal Or No Deal instant ticket:

• Locke Purchased his ticket in November, 2007 and entered the required information from his non-winning ticket into the Deal Or No Deal sweepstakes page as featured on the New York Lottery’s website, nylottery.org.
• On November 17, 2007, the New York Lottery and MDI conducted a random drawing to select 18 New York Lottery Players to win a trip to Hollywood to appear on the Deal Or No Deal game show hosted by Howie Mandel. Although not selected as a trip winner, Locke was automatically entered into a national, bonus drawing for a chance to win $1,000,000.
• On September 5, 2008, the New York Lottery conducted a special drawing to randomly select 18 finalists to participate in the national drawing for the $1,000,000 bonus prize. Locke was of 18 New York finalists selected from the more than 700,000 entries received.
• On September 17, 2008, Locke’s name was randomly selected as the winner of the $1,000,000 Deal Or No Deal bonus prize. His name was pulled from a pool of 113 finalists representing the 20 states, including New York, participating in the national promotion. Officials from MDI conducted the drawing under the supervision of representatives from the New York Lottery and auditors from Ernst & Young. The drawing took place at Scientific Games headquarters in Georgia.

Locke is the latest local Lottery player to win a cash prize valued at $1,000,000 or more from a New York Lottery second chance promotion. In 2002, Keith Bishop of Hudson Falls, Washington County, won a $1,000,000 cash prize in the Lottery’s $1,000,000 Half Court Shoot Out promotion. Bishop’s non-winning instant ticket won him one chance to sink a half-court shot during a New York Knicks game at Madison Square Garden. His winning effort earned him a $1,000,000 on the spot.

The New York Lottery contributed nearly $2.6 billion to help support education in New York State on revenues of $7.549 billion in fiscal year 2007-08 - - a profit margin of 34.3%. The New York Lottery continues to be North America’s largest and most profitable Lottery, earning over $34.2 billion in education support statewide since its founding over 40 years ago.