Everyone has heard about the lottery at least once in their life. Be it in the childhood when your parents wanted to try their luck and tugged you along to buy a ticket or two, or when you stumbled across an article about it on the web, talking about a winner losing their money quickly.
Well, and you’re sure not as professional with the lottery as some people are. When you were given a lottery ticket, you just got confused. Even googling “someone gave me a lottery ticket and I don’t know what to do with it” and asking for a solution didn’t help. You’re lost and you have no idea what to do with your new lucky ticket.
In this article, we’ll clear up the misunderstandings about gifting someone a lottery ticket, what lottery is, how it works and what the most popular types are. We’ll also show you the pros and cons of playing the lottery so you’ll fully realize how important your decision is.
Can Someone Gift You a Lottery Ticket
It’s definitely okay to give lottery tickets as gifts if that’s not given to a kid or teenager. You shouldn’t receive the tickets if you’re not of legal age. Also, getting a ticket early in life can lead to a gambling addiction, unfortunately. So, don’t say yes to the lottery when you’re very young.
Yet, if you’re an adult who received a ticket as a present, don’t reject it. Even if you have no idea what to do with it, take it and learn how to use it properly, as it can end with you winning something big, maybe even a whole jackpot. Moreover, you should know that you don’t have to share your winnings with the one who gave you this ticket. There’s no legal obligation to share. Yet, if you want to do that, make sure no one will have to pay taxes for the sum of money you want to give out.
What Lottery Is
A lottery is a form of gambling that’s based on different methods. One of the most popular ones is to pick numbers randomly and win a prize for hitting the right ones. Lotteries can be in different formats, including playing for fixed prizes like any products, sum of money (a jackpot). Lotteries are common all around the world and sometimes can be created by the government.
The most important rules of the lottery are to be licensed and not to sell tickets to minors. If you’re not of legal age, you won’t be able to claim your prize even if you buy the ticket.
How Lottery Works
In case you want to play the lottery for the first time or at least understand it, you should know how lotteries work. There are special titles in every state, and it can be picking random numbers, buying tickets and playing daily.
We’ll look over the basics of some most popular winning titles: Lotto, Powerball, and Strike. They are based in the US and are currently the most common to the players.
Lotto
When you get your ticket, you’ll need to choose the 6 numbers and they will have to line up on your ticket for you to win. You don’t have to guess how they align on your ticket, yet, they need to be correct. It’s possible a special machine to pick the numbers for you randomly if you’re not sure in your own chances, this is called choosing a Dip.
The balls with be drawn on air. You can win 7 types of prizes at the draw. The biggest one can be won by matching all the numbers on your ticket. And the lowest one is one of the easiest to win. You only need to match three.
The Lotto jackpot is $1 million at each draw if there’s only one winner. If there are more winners, the jackpot will be divided by the number of people who won.
Powerball
You try to win Powerball by adding it to any of your ticket lines, at the end of the line. Just think of a number between 1 and 10, and add them to the ends. If you have a winning Lotto line along with your picked Powerball line, your prize grows even more.
The Powerball jackpot grows from $4 million until it’s won or until it reaches the $50 million draw.
Strike
To win a Strike, you’ll have to check the order of your numbers and the balls are drawn. If the first four matches perfectly, then you won a strike. The number you win must be on the same line of your ticket, and you can add up all three methods together or join two of them. For example, you can add Powerball or Strike to the main Lotto.
The Strike winning is also growing until it’s finally won or reaches the last draw when it must be won.
Pros and Cons of Playing the Lottery
In case you’re still unsure with how to use your ticket and if you really should so that, let’s look at lotteries differently. We’ll provide you with the pros and cons of playing the lottery, and you’ll decide if the odds are good enough for you to risk it and start gambling.
Pros
- there are a lot more odds to win the lottery than any other gambling;
- it can be fun to bet and play while watching the draw;
- the lottery can become a good hobby for those who like counting and math;
- you will come up with interesting strategies to win;
- funds from lotteries mostly go to good causes like funding hospitals and schools;
- there’s a possibility to find a lot of friends who’ll give you valuable advice for your earnings.
Cons
- the odds are good, yet, it’s not easy to win any good sum of money;
- even if you win a jackpot, it’s easy to lose your money and go bankrupt quickly;
- lottery tickets can turn into an addiction if you buy too many tickets in hopes to win.
How to Win at the Lottery
So, now you’re sure you want to at least try to play once. For that, we’ll provide you with tips and tricks to increase your chances of winning.
- Know the odds of each lottery. Ensure that you’re getting the most out of those you play. Most state lotteries and US lotteries have better odds of winning for its locals.
- Play regularly and use your numbers. When you’ve already picked the numbers you like, be they lucky or special to you or just random, get used to them. Don’t play every week, but buy more tickets when you do play. Also, don’t use the Dip (numbers randomly picked by the machine).
- Know when to stop. When you know that you’ll be able to win with 90 more tickets, you’ll have urges to buy them. Well, they don’t ensure you will get a jackpot, and you can quickly lose your money. Stop when you reach your fund limit. Play responsibly.
Now you know what to do with the lottery ticket your friend or family member gave you. You’re not scared to play if you know you want it, and you have the entire basis to win. We told you about how lotteries work and main tips for a win. Good luck!
