5 Million Bucks . . . and Counting

BACKGROUND: Before the gradual elimination of the old numbers games began last month, Pasquale Benenati had been the luckiest winner in the five-year history of the California lottery. Benenati had walked off with winnings of more than $5.3 million, including the Lotto bonanza. The only game prize he didn’t win was the $500,000 Little Lotto jackpot, canceled in December.

UPDATE: Now the 59-year-old Riverside businessman is feeling luckier than ever about the new series of games being introduced this year. The games will offer players higher odds of winning. Fantasy Five, which will replace Little Lotto in February, will be seven times easier to win, the state Lottery Commission says. “That’s going to be a snap,” Benenati declares, already anticipating another winning streak.