Chase the Ace jackpot in Sydney grows to at least $1.6M

Saturday's Chase the Ace in Sydneyis poised to surpass last year's Inverness event where the jackpot winner took home $1.7 million.

Now in week 44, the draw, run jointly by the Ashby Royal Canadian Legion and the Horizon Achievement Centre, will have an expected jackpot of at least $1.6 million, according to spokesman Stephen Tobin.

He bases that figure on the number of tickets sold last week 760,000 which he expects will be surpassed on Saturday. He's heardpeople are calling from across the province to book hotels and plan a weekend visit to Sydney.

Eight cards are left in the deck as the elusive chasefor the ace of spades continues.

"If we make it beyond this Saturday, I have high expectations that our jackpot will exceed that of Inverness," said Tobin. "I think that it would be spectacular to see it go as far as it can possibly go."

'It's just been fabulous'

Business owners in the Sydney area, such as Bruce Meloney who runs The Shoe Tree,sharethat sentiment. He calls Chase the Ace "a big economic boost" for the downtown at a time of year when business is typically slow.

"It's just been fabulous," he said. "There's no losers in this one. It's a great thing."

Restauranteur Ardon Mofford is thrilled with how the Sydney waterfront has come alive.

"People have come out in droves," he said. "It's like the cruise ship season started early this year."

Tobin stresses the odds of winning Chase the Ace are far better than, say, Atlantic Lotto. On top of that, it supports charitable causes.

He also points to the convenience of having the event live steamed so people can watch without having to be at the main venue.

"For last week's draw we saw approximately 66,000 people tuning into the live stream," he said.

Tickets will be on sale at eight venues in Sydney on Saturday between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m.

The draw will take place at approximately 7 p.m. The live stream is available at www.chasetheacesydney.com