My husband won $4,000 in the Texas Lotto back in the 1990s. He missed the million dollar jackpot by ONE number. (He had 4 of the 5.) We didn't know whether to be happy about the win or sad about the loss.
Our tickets (in Virginia) are sold at a variety of public retail store outlets as an added service...convenience stores, gas stations, grocery stores (chains and independents.) Not all that long ago vending machines were installed in many of these places that sell a variety of scratch tickets and tickets for draw games. (Like the cigarette machines of old, I wonder if there are issues with minors using them.) And they all recently had scanners installed so you can self-check your tickets rather than bothering the clerks. Part of that may have been driven by disreputable merchants lying about the winning status, pretending to throw away your "loser" and then claiming the prize for themselves. The merchant machines were also modified so they play a distinctive winning chime if your ticket won a prize. Did you see my prior comment about a Romanian-born Aussie statistician winning one of Virginia's early jackpots in 1992? There was quite a stink here. Apparently the man was the brains behind 14 such wins in various nations. Laws were passed to prevent him from plying his trade anymore. See what happens when you figure out how to win??? Only losers need apply...
There was a story about a couple in New Jersey who were watching the news, and they saw a report about an unclaimed lottery prize of millions of dollars that was about to expire at midnight. The woman said "I know I've got those numbers here somewhere!!!" They literally tore their house apart looking for it. Late a night, they found the ticket. They sped to the nearest convenience store so as to at least register a claim just before midnight. As it turns out, she did not have the winning ticket. You can request a printout of the winning number so you can later check your ticket against it, and that is what she recalled having (good memory, huh?) and that is what they found and rushed to the store without really paying close attention. Must have been the most exciting evening of their lives.
I've never bought lottery tickets. I did win $4,000.00 one night at the Black Jack table in downtown Las Vegas 40 years ago. I've never been able to duplicate it since.
I bought a Powerball ticket last week. I matched one number. That's an improvement over the last one. I didn't match any on that one. I buy maybe 5 or 6 a year. If I bought more, do you think it would increase my chances of winning?
I do indeed buy "some" every now and then, but I also recall my husband saying, after I've announced my intention to "run down to the Hannaford and buy some lottery tickets, "Oh! Would you buy me one?"
When it first started here I bought a ticket in the Georgia Lottery every week. A large portion of the proceeds go to Hope Scholarships, which paid 100% of tuition to college for Georgia students, if they had a good SAT score, carried a full load, and maintained a GPA of 3.0. I think they added some funding for Pre-K later. Unfortunately the poorest people were, and still are, financing mostly upper-middle-class kids to go to college. The debate continues. I lost interest after a couple of years. Never won anything.
Yes, I do throw my money away on lottery tickets from time to time. I have won $1,800.00 on a state lottery ticket. I paid a dollar for that ticket. A few other times I have won $200.00 on Instant scratch off ticket.
I did years ago when our state lottery was new, nothing crazy, just a couple of bucks now and then. I won $20 once but the novelty wore off and I quit. I decided that a few dollars a month in the hand was worth more than millions in my imagination.
I won $20 in scratch off ticket - Once, Not much of a gambler -, probably just as well . I have a fear of being rich money wise. Wealth brings on a whole new set of problems,I can live without.
When the lottery started here there were rediculously large numbers of 10 million dollar plus winners. And the larger the pot got, the more interesting the stories about the winners. I bought a ticket and won 38 dollars But when hubby and I talked about the possibility of winning, he said after taxes took half, he wanted his half off the top because he knew I would end up giving my half all away.