`A Real Vacation' Tops Prizes on this Week's Big Spin Show

SACRAMENTO, Calif.--(Business Wire)--
This week on the California Lottery's Big Spin show, three
contestants won a total of $180,000. The show aired statewide
Saturday, May 3, 2008. The grand total won was $202,500!

Jennifer Castro's family is very important to her. That's why this
San Bruno Fantasy 5 Dream Machine contestant plans on taking her
family on vacation with the $80,000 prize she won. "At first I was
going to take my family on a short vacation, possibly to Las Vegas,"
Castro explained after her win. "But now, because of the amount of
money I won, we can go on a real vacation, a longer one, farther
away."

Michelle Valle, a human resources recruiter from Santa Ana, was
the contestant who outplayed nine other contestants in Aces High.
Valle won $60,000 and plans to save some of her prize money for a down
payment on a home and to travel.

Arnulfo Valdes Romero, a welder from Palmdale, uncovered
"Spin-Spin-Spin" on his Scratchers(R) ticket sending him straight to
the Big Spin wheel. There, he won $40,000, which he plans to use to
expand his business and possibly pay off his house.

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Winners Summary

NAME CITY AMOUNT
--------------------- ----------- --------
Jennifer Castro San Bruno $80,000
Michelle Valle Santa Ana $60,000
Arnulfo Valdes Romero Palmdale $40,000
Carmen Hernandez Oxnard $5,000
Linda Cessor Hawthorne $4,000
Thomas Johnson Long Beach $2,500
Joseph Auteri Sebastopol $2,000
John Gonzales Sacramento $2,000
Victor Almaguer Newark $1,750
Keith Marshall Chino Hills $1,750
Josue Ramirez Norwalk $1,750
Robert Ortega Oxnard $1,750

TOTAL $202,500
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For high resolution copies of photos of Jennifer Castro, Michelle
Valle or Arnulfo Valdes Romero please contact (916) 324-9639 or e-mail
newsroom@calottery.com.

More than 95 cents of every Lottery dollar is returned to the
community in the form of contributions to education, prizes and retail
commissions. The California Lottery contributes at least 34 cents of
every dollar that players spend on Lottery products to public
education and returns more than 50 percent of sales to players in the
form of prizes. Since its inception in 1985, the Lottery has
contributed more than $20 billion to California schools out of total
sales of nearly $55 billion. Retailers benefit too, earning $3.5
billion in compensation since 1985.

www.calottery.com

(End of advance for release 4:30 p.m. PT May 3).

California State Lottery
Olga Gallardo or Cathy Doyle Johnston, 916-324-9639

Copyright Business Wire 2008