McHenry VFW Queen of Hearts still rolling over; pot now at almost $1.4 million

No one has picked the Queen of Hearts since May 9, 2023.

The streak means the McHenry VFW Post 4600′s Queen of Hearts game’s total pot now sits at nearly $1.4 million.

For the uninitiated, the charitable game works like this: A player buys a ticket for the game, writing on the ticket their name and which numbered envelope they’ve guessed is holding the queen of hearts playing card. The ticket goes into a hopper and each Tuesday evening just one is pulled out from the thousands bought. If the ticket holder guessed the correct envelop with the queen of hearts, the player splits the pot with the VFW. The veterans organization takes 40% goes back to the VFW for charity program and other needs, and puts 10% into the pot for the next game, with the winner taking the other half.

If the card picked is the queen of spades, diamonds or clubs, the ticket holder gets 5% of the pot, or nearly $69,000 as of this week. That’s also the payout if one of the two jokers is selected. Even if the wrong card is picked, the ticket holder gets $500 for having their ticket pulled.

There are 28 cards in the 54-card deck still in play. The $5 tickets are sold at the McHenry VFW, 3002 W. IL Route 120, throughout the week and up to 30 minutes before the 8 p.m. Tuesday drawings. Winners need not be present.

The pot will keep increasing until either the queen of hearts is pulled, or until the total pot reaches $6 million. That rule was created by the McHenry City Council to keep the crowds from getting too large. If the queen of hearts is not selected before the pot hits $6 million, the VFW will pull tickets until one of them picks the right envelope.