Need a new strategy and motivation

Reply #18

Boney526 — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 04:19:00 GMT

I usually buy my tickets from one store that I trust. When I do buy them, I usually ask the clerk which one he thinks I should get from the $2 ones and sometimes $5 ones (the $1 scratch offs have bad odds in NJ, almost every other one's payouts are the same overall- just with different prize structures.) The reason is just because he usually ends up lucky and because he knows which ones haven't hit a big prize yet. For example, this morning I went to go play a Pick 3. The Clerk added Instant/Bon... [ More ]

Reply #17

luisM — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 22:19:49 GMT

I say wait until somebody's grandma wins and then date her. Make sure she writes you in her will.

.....Just being humorous....don't get all bent out of shape guys....

Reply #16

James1 — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 21:56:12 GMT

I usually flip a coin to decide which scratcher to buy. Ive had instances where a ticket buttons light will flicker or be dimmer then the others and I take that as I sign and ive won several times $100 this way.

Reply #15

ameriken — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 21:08:39 GMT

Another thing I like to do is check the Colorado Lottery website...they have a list of 'grand prizes still remaining'.

If I see a 0, then for me it's time to quit playing that game. Check your own states website. Of course it is not going to be 100% accurate, the website may say there are 1 or 2 grand prizes remaining and they may have already been scratched but not redeemed. But at least if you see a zero you know you don't have to waste your time or money on that game.

Reply #14

B$Rizzle — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 20:26:10 GMT

So funny you mention this because this is how I buy my tickets 90% of the time...Ive said it before and ill say it again now. 90% of the time before I enter a store I already know which ones I plan on buying.

I think planning ahead really helps. Things may change a bit if you ask the clerk about any recent winners, and the clerk says yea there was a $500 winner on Gold Rush 30 minutes ago ...Then I would stay away from that Gold Rush book if thats the game I had planned on buying.

Reply #13

TheOtherOne — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 19:50:08 GMT

Try getting an image in your head BEFORE going into a store or even getting to a store -- maybe as you sleep or before you leave the house. Picture a certain game, or a certain *color* of a game, maybe a certain store that may stick out in your mind and try that place.

This has been fun for me and has actually given me winners before on several occasions. Nothing major yet, but better than losing every time.

Maybe its forced preminition, maybe its a gut feeling, either way its all luck and... [ More ]

Reply #12

James1 — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 17:47:13 GMT

Wow great info here guys ! Some eye-opening stuff.

From now on I will cut back on chasing winners. I will also cut back on anything under $10 as I find my loose bills going towards these scratchers with horrible odds. Gonna also cut back on the games I truely hate - FMC, $200 Million Spectacular, LFL $200K. I figured if I hate playing them then why waste money on them ?

I love $3 Million Monopoly for example. And its good motivation to find the symbols in that game. Cash Bonanza is anothe... [ More ]

Reply #11

MattfromPA — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 17:40:35 GMT

Exactly! You and dr made great points. I know how addictive these games are, believe me. But I try to keep the fun in playing. It sounds like James has lost the fun involved. I usually buy only up to 2 of each game unless they are $2 tickets - and I only play more than 5 of those if I want to build up. When games are brand new, I'll buy more in a row sometimes.

Reply #10

dr65 — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 15:35:48 GMT

James I wish a voice in my head would tell me which ticket to buy and that it would be a million dollar choice.

I'll tell you what you need to do..just buy 2 - 4 and stop. I don't mean for the day, I mean at that machine or counter. Don't buy up to the winner.

I think what's happening is you're stuck on bad packs or stuck with the idea the winner is there somewhere....the problem is: you do not know

who was there before you and whether they won $1,000 or $20 or $500. You also cannot tel... [ More ]

Reply #9

B$Rizzle — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 15:25:53 GMT

Hi James

Ive been following alot of your posts over the last few weeks, as you and I seem to comment on alot of the scratch threads.

One thing I would suggest is not playing 10-15 at a time. I personally only buy 1 $20 scratcher at a time (per game) and if it looses, sometimes I will go back into the store and buy the next in line. I may buy 2-3 at a time but for different games.

For example:

1 BDB

1 $200K Year for LIfe

1 $3 Million Dollar Monopoly

Ive been pl... [ More ]

Reply #8

Jon D — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 14:10:02 GMT

I look at Scratchers realistically. They are not designed for you to make a profit, on the contrary, they are designed for you to lose money in the long run. But they do have much better payback overall than the regular draw/jackpot lottery games. We're all just trying to keep playing until we hit some big wins to get out ahead of the odds.

Look at it this way: All state lotteries are only designed to give the public back only about 50% of what it gambles. If you are playing a long time are a... [ More ]

Reply #7

the305scratcha — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 07:07:43 GMT

im playing one a day im not under yet i spree every couple days tho, not more then i can afford

Reply #6

ameriken — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 06:27:08 GMT

You asked 'who has been at this point and what would you do' and I answered what I would do because I was at that point. My post was not so much about her winning, but rather about the idea of buying a ticket a day. We cut our losses and all that lost money on losing tickets by going to just buying 'one-a-day'.

Reply #5

James1 — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 06:17:45 GMT

People are known to say stuff like that after they have won a jackpot. Like in Powerball I picked the numbers myself or with scratchers A voice in my head told me to buy that scratcher and it happened that it won. The truth is you look at the winners gallery 99% of those people have addict scratcher written all over them. The casual buy-1-ticket-and-win players are very few and far apart.

Reply #4

James1 — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 06:13:06 GMT

The main store I purchase from sells at least 2 books of each scratcher per day. This past month there have been a $10K winner, $1K winner and 3 $500 winners.

I do hit $100 a lot but obviously that is not enough for me. The money goes straight back to new tickets.

Whats funny ive been the type to always find money on the ground. Last year alone I found 6 different $100 dollar bills and numerous smaller bills. So I know I have some luck but when I try my luck at gambling its only mediocre... [ More ]

Reply #3

four4me — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 05:58:47 GMT

don't be to down on yourself they print 5 to 20 million tickets for each scratch off game. You should purchase your scratch tickets at the stores with the high volume sales they are the stores most likely to sell the big winners.

Reply #2

ameriken — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 05:46:14 GMT

On one of the lottery shows there was a lady who won 2 million dollar scratch tickets on 2 separate occasions at the same store. Her 'strategy' was to play one ticket a day.

My wife and I liked that idea...instead of chasing after a winning ticket and ending up losing most of our money, the one-a-day idea takes that emotion out of it. I'm not saying this will net a million dollar ticket, but it's a more disciplined way to play. If we win something, great, we've covered some losses and get to... [ More ]

Reply #1

MattfromPA — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 03:03:31 GMT

Hi, James - I know it's hard, but if you can't afford the losses, it's best to stop and start fresh, or cut back at least. Sometimes I make the biggest profits with a few tickets at a time. Those consecutive losing ticket streaks in FL seem even worse than PA ones right now - another reason to cut back or stop for a bit.

Need a new strategy and motivation

James1 — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 02:38:57 GMT

Well the lottery losses just keep adding up for me. I dont know if im the unluckiest frequent player ever or im just not meant to win. I have played every game left and right sometimes rolls at a time and the most ive come away with over a 4 month scratch off spree is $200 bucks. Just when I feel comfortable playing the first few tickets on a roll they have all been losing all of a sudden. Its hard to come up with a strategy when 15 tickets in a row lose. I was doing well a few days ago just whe... [ More ]