Fireball add-on will be available starting May 3
By Kate Northrop
One week from now, players will have the opportunity to try out the Virginia Lottery's new Pick 3 and Pick 4 Fireball feature.
The Lottery announced the arrival of a new draw game option for its Pick 3 and Pick 4 games that will improve chances of winning a prize. Starting Mon., May 3, players will be able to purchase the add-on.
After each daytime and nightly Pick 3 and Pick 4 drawing, one of ten possible Fireball numbers ranging between 0-9 will be drawn for each game.
Players can then use the drawn Fireball number to replace any of the regular drawn numbers to create new combinations. In other words, it is possible to make three sets of new numbers for Pick 3 and four sets for Pick 4. If a player's numbers match the winning numbers using the Fireball number, they will win a Fireball prize.
The odds of winning the Pick 3 top prize of $500 by matching all three numbers straight is 1 in 1,000, while the odds of winning the Pick 4 top prize of $5,000 by matching all four numbers straight is 1 in 10,000. As it is possible to win using unique number combinations with the Fireball option, the odds of winning using the feature vary.
Adding the Fireball feature to a ticket doubles the cost of the plays.
Pick 3 and Pick 4 drawings each occur twice daily, with both drawings taking place at 2:00 pm EST and 11:00 pm EST.
Dang that seems really fun - I wish I had that option in my state.
South Carolina Education Lottery also just announced that they will be adding the Fireball Option to Pick 3 and Pick 4.
The Connecticut Lottery added it a few months ago. The Florida Lottery added the Fireball earlier this year...this exciting Daily Numbers' option is spreading like, well, wildfire, as a matter of fact it is also available on the Pennsylvania Lottery and there it is called the Wildball option. The Pa Lottery launched it about six years ago and New Jersey followed a year or so later with its version, called Fireball. I believe the Fireball option started around 2015 or so with the Illinois lottery.
Anyway, it is a good option for us Pick 3 and Pick 4 players, but it can get expensive since to utilize the Fireball option requires the player to double their base bet. Very lucrative for the lottery, or course. I play this option in Pa and NJ but rarely for Pick 3, instead using it in Pick 4 but only for my main number, that way I can maintain my daily numbers budget.
I have hit in both states several times with the Fireball giving me a straight hit, netting $750 in Pa and from $800 to $1,200 in New Jersey. I also have hit a number twice on the same ticket when the original number came and the Fireball matched one of those numbers, which turned a $2,500 winning ticket in Pa for a 50 cent bet into a $3,200 win. (The fireball win pays about 30 to 40 percent of a regular win.)
There are two major differences in how the Fireball is utilized in various lotteries. Some lotteries draw the Fireball first and then the Pick 3 or Pick 4. Some lotteries draw the Pick 3 and Pick 4 number first and then draw the Fireball.
And some lotteries draw one Fireball to be used for the Pick 3 and Pick 4, but other lotteries, such as Connecticut, draw two separate Fireballs, one to be used for Pick 3 and one for Pick 4.
I prefer the lotteries that draw the Fireball last and draw one Fireball for both, which is what New Jersey does.
In conclusion, the Fireball is a good option for turning what would have been a losing ticket into a winning ticket, but because the cost to play it is 100 percent more than the original bet it should be used judiciously or you risk being an even bigger loser.
I will not use the Fireball option every day.
But, I'm looking forward to trying it.
Good Luck VA Players!!!
Nice rundown of the options available in different states!
I actually emailed my state lottery asking them if they had plans to consider this in the future - nope.