Draw games versus Scratch-offs?

Reply #37

Rook — Sun, 21 Jan 2018 21:10:33 GMT

I am not much a fan of scratchers, myself. I don't have the self-control necessary not to scratch it off right away, so the entertainment value is very minimal, very short-lived. The odds on some of them are better than most or even all the draw games, but the scratcher mid and top prizes are not very high.

So for example, I could spend $10 on a scratcher with like 1:3.7 odds, and justify a $10 per play for the odds being better than even 1:4. However, the entertainment value will be ove... [ More ]

Reply #36

Coin Toss — Sun, 21 Jan 2018 06:04:27 GMT

I forgot to mention raffles, this is where the win per dollar really counts.

The next time you hear Raffles are your best chance to win $1M , well..........

Reply #35

Coin Toss — Sat, 20 Jan 2018 04:22:30 GMT

Slick Nick,

It depends what the player is trying to win, but consider the payoffs per dollar. The only scratchers that really pat out bur are in the $10 to $50 range (I think Texas has ir had $50 ones).

So if a $2 or $4 MM or PB tickets wins $40M but a $20 scratcher wins $40M what's the win per dollar? (Also known as relative to the buy in)

As for smaller prizes scrathchers pay more often but the lotteries know all too well that moxt of those wins go right back into buying more tickets... [ More ]

Reply #34

Hermanus104 — Fri, 19 Jan 2018 05:09:25 GMT

Draw games. As far as I know, birthdays can't win scratchoffs.

Reply #33

GiveFive — Wed, 10 Jan 2018 23:25:14 GMT

I coulda said the above post so much faster/better/cheaper etc.

Thinking of my winnings as other peoples money ( OPM for short) means that I can lose it without the pain caused by losing my own money! Using OPM is better than having a goose that lays golden eggs because it amounts to taking the golden eggs laid by somebody else's goose. That's a quote from Louis Brandeis written in 1913/1914.

Yeah, I know I lost 15 bucks..but so what? It was just OPM!! G5

Reply #32

GiveFive — Tue, 09 Jan 2018 21:51:43 GMT

The house loves people who think they're playing with house money. Whether you're up or down when it happens, anything you win is your money. If you use it to play again the house gets another chance to turn your money into their money, and over the long term the house always wins

Truer words were never spoken. And when you consider the fact that I've lost one heckuva lot more times than I've won, I'm definitely not ahead of the house. In my particular case, The House will always be ahead un... [ More ]

Reply #31

KY Floyd — Tue, 09 Jan 2018 19:56:22 GMT

this is your FIRST TIME ... that you felt compelled to critique it.

I probably never saw it before. I've got zero interest in pick 3 or pick 4, so I probably didn't pay any attention to it then, based on the subject. I only took a quick look now because it was brought up in relation to what types of games people play and you said you share some of my sentiments. Since you said the test ran from pages 8 to 11 that's the only thing I looked at, so my comments were directed at, and limited to,... [ More ]

Reply #30

Slick Nick — Tue, 09 Jan 2018 12:28:40 GMT

Soledad, you made a good point. There's a set amount of winners, that's true. The way you are doing it keeps you in the game with a return of some sort, smart move! Have a good one.

Reply #29

Slick Nick — Tue, 09 Jan 2018 12:25:06 GMT

Great story GIVEFIVE, I see it all the time too. LOL I play them once in awhile, but as you pointed out, some people literally feast on them. Oh well, to each his own. Have a good one.

Reply #28

Soledad — Tue, 09 Jan 2018 05:17:45 GMT

Well ok i think i get your question now. If you regular a store and you play on the regular you get a feel for whats there and how many, I mean of course if you scratch you got favorite numbers to pick or games that you feel are good. The way I see it if I spend $20 on draw games I usually like to break even with what i play by winning $20 bucks on scratchers. I'm fine with that. I bought 5 $10 cashwords today, got $60, one $50 one $10, bought two $5 scratchers got $10. And I spent about $20 on... [ More ]

Reply #27

GiveFive — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 13:16:06 GMT

Ya know what I get a kick out of? Some guy or gal sitting in their car in the parking lot of a convenience store scratching a bunch of scratch-offs! Seen it a million times.

One day I went into my local dairy/convenience store and a young guy (a twenty something) was standing in line at the cash register buying a ton of scratch-offs. He easily could have bought three or four hundred dollars worth of them. I went about getting my items in the store and brought them to the register, but the You... [ More ]

Reply #26

Slick Nick — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 11:10:13 GMT

Same here RC, in New York, we have more scratch-offs than you can count

Reply #25

Slick Nick — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 11:09:04 GMT

I pretty much do it like you Six, not many scratch-offs. Work within a budget

Reply #24

rcbbuckeye — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 02:22:12 GMT

I play draw games more than scratchers. I might buy 1 or 2 scratchoffs a month. There's so many to choose from and I like to play games that can allow me to retire, like Lotto, PB, and MM. Scratchoffs that pay out a million dollars or more cost at least $20 and with Texas as big as it is there's not very many winning tix.

But, I do see some on here who do well on scratchoffs.

Reply #23

PrisonerSix — Sun, 07 Jan 2018 23:28:13 GMT

I don't play scratch offs very much. I play Powerball, Megamillions, Lotto, and Easy 5 twice a week. Would like to get more into scratch offs, but just can't figure out where to start.

Reply #22

Lucky Loser — Sun, 07 Jan 2018 21:34:41 GMT

I do appreciate your time, interest, and critique of my input here as well as my THIRD REFERENCE since its' inception to this same link containing the bankroll experiment. For the record, this experiment took place three years ago (2014) during which you were, and still are, a vested member that is usually pretty well thought out for the most part. My personal main interest here is the fact that this is your FIRST TIME, during the above mentioned references to the experiment, that you felt compe... [ More ]

Reply #21

KY Floyd — Sun, 07 Jan 2018 09:05:50 GMT

I don't blame you if you don't have the time or interest.

It would be easier to follow if it was more coherent and with less extraneous stuff. Maybe I've missed some of it, but here's what I saw.

You said it would be based on box plays @ 50 cents and then start by counting wins for pairs. You list 984 as an $80 win, but it's a 6-way box win for $40, not a 3-way box win for $80. Same for 964. You continually talk about a cost of $13.50 to play 27 numbers, but front and back pairs are sepa... [ More ]

Reply #20

Soledad — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 22:04:52 GMT

Because the pick3 numbers show. The win4 numbers never show. In 20 years there are some win4 numbers which have never shown. That's never the case with pick3. I could never imagine doing that, although I have for win4, and yeah it took too long. For me it's just the fun of winning. I'm past the days of betting that which I don't have.

Reply #19

Lucky Loser — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 21:59:23 GMT

Have fun with it, man, and those nice hits are signs that you're on the right track or your consistency in playing is well worth it. Either way, you seem to be recovering either some or all of your money at some point which allows you to play more financially effective...which makes it even more fun. I said I'd start playing PB and MM's again this year since I now have the funds to spend on them without taxing my conscious too much. Like the New York title banner reads, Hey, You Never Know... [ More ]

Reply #18

Lucky Loser — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 21:46:19 GMT

My bad on that. I was looking at the January 5, 2018 4 of 5 match results, when you did say that it was last week, and I assumed it would be the same. They vary from draw to draw as I now know. In the end, it's $158 better on your pocket!!!

https://www.lotterypost.com/game/148/prizes

Reply #17

Slick Nick — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 21:14:45 GMT

Best of luck

Reply #16

GiveFive — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 21:00:02 GMT

Dunno know if you read or heard about that botched Connecticut Super Draw Raffle that was held last Monday, but I have three tickets for that too. (I live close to I-84 so Connecticut is 45 minutes away and PA is an hour's drive) I don't know if I won anything in CT's raffle drawing because they are going to announce this week the date of a second drawing to rectify the botched drawing. So I deliberately chose NOT to check my tickets and after they hold the second Super Draw Raffle drawing I'll... [ More ]

Reply #15

Slick Nick — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 20:52:21 GMT

GiveFive, good luck, I love to see people win

Reply #14

GiveFive — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 20:51:58 GMT

Smart way to play Lucky. As for me, it's purely entertainment. If I win, great! If not, Oh well! I view my number picking as a challenge and I actually like it. I lose most of time, but my recent 4 out of 5 hit was my second one in the last eight months. I won $575 playing Take5 in May of 2017. I've also had four or five three number hits since last May which pays out anywhere from $15 to $25.

I only play MM/PB when it's a large jackpot (like now) and when I play I always add either the Megap... [ More ]

Reply #13

GiveFive — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 20:26:52 GMT

Hells Bells Lucky!! 330.50??? I won $488.50!!!! But thanks anyway! G5

Reply #12

GiveFive — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 20:23:18 GMT

Thanks Slick, and I've no idea if interstate betting laws cause problems. I aint ever won a dime out side of New York. Well, on second thought, yes I did. I won 20 bucks a year or so ago while in Florida playing Fantasy Five. I won 15 bucks in North Carolina too, but as you can see, I didn't have to worry about the Tax Man.

I'll figure it out tonite after I win a cool Mill in PA's Millionaire Raffle. G5

Reply #11

Lucky Loser — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 20:11:12 GMT

The experiment begins on Page 8 and runs 'effectively' through Page 11. It's a fair amount of reading which requires close attention to details and I don't blame you if you don't have the time or interest. We basically started with an $80 bankroll to spend on a set of (27) combos without changing them or the type of bet. Before each next play, we factored in the last play win, loss, and/or profit to illustrate the real time financial activity of Pick 3 which most don't do. It was designed as a h... [ More ]

Reply #10

Slick Nick — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 18:50:46 GMT

Lucky, I saw Page 8, and your posting. I didn't see where you won or lost out of 27 bets. Did it payoff

Reply #9

Lucky Loser — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 18:40:53 GMT

Yeah, I sort of share the same sentiments as you and KYFloyd but, I'll always be in favor of a small profit 100% better than a loss of any kind. I mean, we're dealing with money and gambling here so the general idea is to see a return...if possible. I'll add that it is very possible to accomplish this but, players all too often become misguided with wins and losses due to faulty mathematical practices. Let's use your $20.00 bucks per week budget as an example. If you spend $5/day on one draw and... [ More ]

Reply #8

Slick Nick — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 18:25:32 GMT

thank you Raven. New York State Lottery, case closed

Reply #7

Raven62 — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 17:52:57 GMT

Play the Games you have a Prayer of Winning

Reply #6

Slick Nick — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 17:08:50 GMT

KY, these days, and due to my budget goal I set, I don't play the 3 way, or 4 way, with an exception to the rule. My goal is 20.00 bucks a week, give or take a buck for the Take 5 out of my pocket. Cans and bottle money, my choice.

Reply #5

KY Floyd — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 16:57:57 GMT

Unless I get extremely lucky the government is going to keep the majority of the money I spend on lottery tickets, so I see no point in trying to win chump change that won't result in a major life change. There are a few scratch games with prizes in the millions but the overwhelming majority are pretty small, and even the top prizes are often under 50k.

For the life of me I'll never understand why people play pick 3. If you spend $1 per day and win the very first time you'll be back in the re... [ More ]

Reply #4

Slick Nick — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 16:50:37 GMT

You made a great point Lucky,,, depending how much you'll be spending from this point . BUDGET BETTING..

Reply #3

Lucky Loser — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 16:39:26 GMT

I had a 4 out of 5 Take5 hit, I'm gonna use Andy Cuomo's money to buy 5 more Millionaire Raffle tix.

That's a nice $330.50 bump! Depending on how much you'll be spending from this point, Andy could be doing your heavy lifting for a good while. Nice

Reply #2

Slick Nick — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 15:22:12 GMT

Hey GiveFive , thanks for commenting. And good luck, Do the laws of interstate betting cause any problems? I've heard so many different stories.

Reply #1

GiveFive — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 15:19:11 GMT

I'm an online games guy. Mostly Take5, and a little Cash 4 Life, but I did play Mega last nite, and I'll buy PB for tonite. But I'm gonna buy those PB tix's with a slight twist...

I'm driving over to Pennsylvania today to buy their New Year's Millionaire Raffle tickets. The raffle drawing is tonite, and they haven't sold all 500,000 tickets. Because last Wednesday I had a 4 out of 5 Take5 hit, I'm gonna use Andy Cuomo's money to buy 5 more Millionaire Raffle tix. While I'm there I'll grab som... [ More ]

Draw games versus Scratch-offs?

Slick Nick — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 11:53:18 GMT

Here in New York, as in many other states there are a variety of games. Both draw games and scratch-offs. What do you choose to play first? And is there any special reasoning behind your choice