This is a summation of a news article that I read at Biggamelottery.com today.
Massachusetts Auditor Joe DeNucci said the state's lottery continues to be troubled with multiple ticket cashers. DeNucci is a political foe of Shannon O'Brien's the state Treasurer who office runs the lottery and is the Democratic front-runner for the governor's office.
DeNucci said one lottery winner under the state treasurer's watch claimed 679 prizes worth about $1.2 million, but only paid $9,700, or 0.83 percent, in federal and state taxes.
Prizes below $5,000 are not subject to the automatic 33 percent withholding, presenting a potential loophole for individuals who buy large volumes of tickets, DeNucci said.
My question is this: Is this DeNucci blowing political smoke or are there really professonally lottery players out there making thousands of dollars and going unnoticed because their winnings are less than $5000 at a time?
Are there winning strategies that the regular $5-$10 player can't afford to play and no professional gambler or group would ever expose fearing it would kill the goose laying the golden egg?
Some years ago, there was a european investment group that was featured on a TV show called ' How they do that' that won a jackpot in the Virgina lottery by buying over 80% of the possible combinaions. The spokeman for the group said they looked at lotteries around the world and if the odds and payoff were such that they could make money then they played them. Shorty there after Virgina change the odds and the playing rules for their lotteries.
Something to think about.
RJOh
