Bright Side Tavern Queen of Hearts jackpot tops $700,000 ahead of Oct. 4 draw down

No winner has been drawn for Bright Side Tavern’s annual Queen of Hearts game, and the pot has climbed to more than $700,000. With 25 cards left to turn over, the jackpot is expected to grow before the draw down Oct. 4.

With tickets priced at $2 each, residents are scrambling for their chance to win a prize that could approach $1 million.

A draw down means tickets will be drawn until a winner is announced. According to the Bright Side Tavern Facebook page, “We will cut off a card every 10-15 minutes until the queen is found. All other cards pay $1,000 if present. If you’re not present and your card was already cut off, we will go to the next card to the right. If at bottom of board we move back to the top.”

The ticket owner must be present to claim 90% of the total pot, with the remaining 10% going to next year’s game. If the winner is not present, they will receive 50% of the pot. Non-winning tickets are worth $1,000 if the owner is present.

Tickets will be on sale from 11 a.m. until 1:15 p.m. Saturday. Tavern owner Bobbie Prevot said the deadline is strict.

“In past years there have been over 200 people in line for tickets when sales close,” Prevot said.

The event will also feature food for purchase and booths from vendors and organizations.

Prevot usually livestreams the weekly drawing but said a draw down makes it too difficult to manage videos for each ticket. Instead, she will go live on the Bright Side Tavern Facebook page for the first card and then record videos of the rest. The winner will be notified immediately.