Tag Archives: lottery games
Lottery Myths Exposed
Lottery Myths Exposed
There are many myths surrounding lotteries and most of them that you hear are just that-myths. Perhaps the most commonly heard lottery myth is that you have a greater chance of being struck by lightning than you have of winning the lottery. While this may be partially true for mega jackpot lotteries like Powerball and Mega Millions many lottery games with smaller payouts have surprisingly good odds in favor of the player. Every year there are thousands of lottery players who have won prizes of $10,000 or more.
Many moralistically inclined and the self righteous claim that lotteries are a ‘tax on the poor.’ To be profitable lotteries must target those able to afford lottery tickets. Most lottery players have disposable income which enables them to play various lottery games. Lottery players are a varied lot and many wealthy people routinely play lottery games. In Ohio a millionaire won the lottery not once but twice.
Many people also like to claim that lotteries are some sort of ‘stealth tax.’ Again this is pure unmitigated hogwash! Taxes are compulsory and if you don’t pay you go to jail. No one has ever been imprisoned for failing to purchase a lottery ticket. Playing the lottery is the individual’s choice.
Lotteries cause compulsive gambling. This is probably one of the most ridiculous claims made against lotteries. This attitude about lotteries is rare in Europe but for some reason persists in the US. In the first place compulsive gamblers require constant action and lotteries do not fill that need for those with gambling problems. Lotteries do not cause gambling addiction and studies have shown that gambling addiction is not fed by lotteries. Most compulsive gamblers favor casino games and some online gambling. The online gaming industry has gone to great lengths to identify problem gamblers and many land based casinos bar problem gamblers.
Another big lottery myth is that only winners get any benefit from lotteries and winners are few. Most state lotteries benefit and fund a wide variety of government services. Most states use the greater part of lottery generated revenues for education including scholarships for economically disadvantaged students who would not be able to afford college or professional schools without financial help. Lottery generated revenues have also been used to fund infrastructure projects and programs for the disabled, blind and senior citizens.
There are probably other lottery myths but these are the most commonly heard. If you are a lottery player and someone tries to tell you these myths are true you will have some ready answers!
Popular Lottery Strategies
Popular Lottery Strategies
There are many lottery systems out there making some outlandish claims. Many of these systems are based on sophisticated mathematical formulas and ingenious number prediction systems. For years lottery players have tried to crack a mythical ‘lottery code’ without much success. The hard cold face remains that lotteries are random games of chance unlike games where skill plays a part such as poker and blackjack. The most popular methods used are wheeling, number tracking and pooling. For large lotteries such as Powerball, Euromillions and Mega Millions these systems are useless due to the large number of players.
Many lottery experts say that playing smaller lottery games will give players a better chance of winning. Smaller games have fewer players and offer better odds. Gathering data on past winning numbers is a daunting task which most people do not have the time for. The research necessary to gather all of the data for the popular pick five and pick six lotteries would take thousands of hours. Then the data needs analyzed so that formulas can be created which requires a substantial amount of time.
Frequency analysis, or tracking, is a method that requires the tracking of winning numbers from past lottery games to help predict the numbers with the best chance of hitting again in future lottery games. Some number trackers base their predictions on so called ‘hot’ numbers; numbers that have hit often in past games and are likely to hit again. Other trackers avoid the ‘hot’ numbers and focus on numbers that have not hit but are due to come up at some point. Essentially one tracking system is based on hot numbers while the other is based on ‘cold’ numbers. There are also some methods that combing both schools of thought.
Lottery wheeling is a method of arranging numbers in a way that will improve the player’s chances of picking winning lottery numbers. It is designed to generate number tables providing the player with all possible combinations of numbers to play. Lottery wheeling programs are available online and at land based vendors. One disadvantage of wheeling is that it requires the player to purchase several lottery tickets to play various number combinations.
Pooling, or lottery syndicates, involves groups of people who purchase several lottery tickets each week. Lottery pools, or syndicates, are common in the workplace. One of the biggest lottery wins ever was won by a lottery syndicate in Nebraska where seven syndicate members shared a jackpot of over $300 million. Statistics show that most lottery winners used the ‘quick pick’ option available at lottery retailers. No matter what method used the goal is always the same; to win the next big lottery jackpot!