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Why Not The Smaller Lottery?

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Hello there. In this post I talk about considering playing the smaller lottery. I consider small lotteries as ones with jackpots less than 1 million CAD and bigger lotteries as lotteries with 1 million, 2 million and above for jackpots.

Disclaimer: Play responsibly and manage your finances well.

Pixabay Image Source

 

Topics


  • Playing Smaller Lotteries Is Underrated
  • Not Becoming A Target If You Win A Small Lottery
  • Don't Need That Much Money & The Utility Of Money
  • A Look At My Local Lottery Offerings (Just Outside Toronto Area)  

Playing Smaller Lotteries Is Underrated


Many advertisements talk about trying to win many millions of dollars as a jackpot from winning the lottery. With the big lotteries, the cost per ticket is high at maybe $5 per ticket or something. For a single person 5 dollars could be spent on coffee or for part of the grocery budget.

With a smaller lottery the jackpot is not as huge but it can provide major financial benefits. The odds/chances of winning the jackpot in a smaller lottery is more favourable as you choose less numbers from less number candidates. Lottery ticket prices from smaller lotteries are cheaper.

Pixabay Image Source

 

Not Becoming A Target If You Win A Small Lottery


There are news stories out there where big lottery winners end up being "cursed" when they win. There is this link and this one. It is not known whether some of these winners and their stories are common cases or not. The unfortunate lottery winner stories either fall in the extreme human jealousy case or poor money mismanagement with way too much spending.

As much as there are stories of people winning big and losing it all there are stories of lottery winners who do use the money for good causes (link).

 

Going Under The Radar

In my local Toronto area news, you get a few news stories here and there about lottery winners. It is always about the lottery winners who win the mega jackpot of around 20 something million dollars CAD. I don't think I ever hear of lottery winners from smaller lottos with jackpots of $250,000 CAD or even 1 or 2 million dollars. I guess news networks focus more on the extremes. Who cares about a million dollar prize when there is a 50 million dollar one with an approximate 1 in 33 million chance??!!

Pixabay Image Source

 

Don't Need That Much Money & The Utility Of Money


Winning a big prize of $20 million or $50 million dollars is very nice indeed. One main problem is the fame and facing extreme human jealousy. Another problem is figuring what to do with all that money. I had a small period of time where I was trying out the smaller lottery instead of the mega jackpot ones. I did it for the following reasons:

  • Cost per play was cheaper

  • Odds Of Winning The Jackpot Was Better In A Smaller Lottery

  • A Smaller Jackpot Of $250, 000 CAD tax free Is Still A Good Amount Of Money

I want to focus on the third reason. Winning $20 million or so dollars is life-changing but I would also say that winning $250, 000 or 1 million is life changing too. A quarter of a million is not much compared to 20 million but I can still use it pay down a big chunk of debt, go on vacations, buy precious metals, buy some new clothes and such. Winning 1 or 2 million can buy you a house outside of the big Toronto area cities and outside of Toronto itself. Anything above $3 million in winnings is overkill I think but it can buy you almost any house in the overpriced Toronto city.

 

A Look At My Local Lottery Offerings (Just Outside Toronto Area)


As more of an extra thing. I feature my local lottery offerings with its prizes. I did have a small period in playing the Lottario lottery but I won a few dollars here and there.

I start with the largest lottery and then move down to the smaller lotteries.

Note that lottery winnings in my area do not get taxed! It is kind of interesting as us Canadians (and Ontario residents) pay quite of bit of tax.

Lotto Max

This mega lottery has two draws every Tuesday and Friday. Jackpots start at a minimum of 10 million CAD and can grow up to 70 million. LOTTO MAX is available throughout Canada.

It is $5 for each play where each play grants you three sets of numbers. Players choose seven different numbers from 1 to 50 in each number set.

When the jackpot reaches $50 million, there is an additional event called the MaxMillions draw. The same set of numbers are also used for the draw where winners receive a million dollars when all seven numbers are matched.

According to the website the odds of winning the mega jackpot is 1 in 33,294,800.

Five dollars per play is pricey. Getting three sets of numbers is nice (perception of value) but the odds of winning big is very low. I think a handful of people try to win this mega lottery through group play where people pool in money to lower costs per player in the group.

 

Lotto 649

This Lotto 649 lottery was the biggest lotto game in Canada when I was younger until Lotto MAX came around. The jackpots here are still big. Jackpots have a minimum of 5 million with a guaranteed 1 million dollar prize draw.

At $3 a play, the player chooses six numbers from 1 to 49 for the main draw to win the 5 million+ jackpot. A generated ten digit number is included for the separate 1 million dollar prize draw.

Winning the jackpot has odds of 1 in 13,983,816. (Multiple winners share the money.)

 

Ontario 49

This Ontario 49 Lotto is considered as a "small lottery" as the jackpot is not as "big" versus Lotto 6/49 and LOTTO MAX. The game is only available in the province of Ontario.

With $1 per play, the player has a (small) chance of winning the 2 million dollar jackpot. This jackpot amount is always fixed at 2 million dollars. (The jackpot used to be at 1 million I think.)

One play consists of a set of 6 numbers from 1 to 49. The odds of winning the jackpot is 1 in 13,983,816 which is the same odds as the LOTTO 6/49 with a minimum $5 million dollar jackpot.

The Ontario 49 Lotto is essentially a scaled down version of the LOTTO 649 game. It is just that the jackpot is reduced and the cost per play is reduced.

 

Daily Grand

I think this one is a relatively new Lotto game. This Daily Grand lotto has its ultimate prize of $1000 per day for life. In a $3 play the player chooses 5 numbers 1 to 49 and a "GRAND NUMBER" from 1 to 7.

Matching all the 5 numbers and the grand number is for the $1000 per day for life prize. This has an odds of 1 in 13,348,188.

The second prize is $25 000 per year for life when all 5 numbers are matched and the grand number is not matched. The odds of this is 1 in 2,224,698.

It seems that in theory the jackpots would be better for younger people as you would receive more money in the lifetime. (Maybe young people is the target market?)

 

Lottario

Lottario is a lower tier lotto game. The prizes are not as big and flashy compared to Lotto 649 and LOTTO MAX but Lottario has good odds and some nice features.

The cost per play is $1 with a chance to win the jackpot of a minimum of $250,000. The highest recorded jackpot was $2,250,000. However, it is not unusual to see Lottario jackpots of $500,000, $750,000 and around the 1 million area.

Each play consists of two sets of six numbers from 1 to 45 (not 1 to 49). Match all six numbers to win the jackpot.

There is a second prize draw called an Early Bird draw for those who purchase tickets early before the draw time. Match four drawn numbers to win the Early Bird prize of $50 000 which is shared equally amongst multiple winners.

The odds of winning the main jackpot is 1 in 4,072,530 (vs 1 in 13,983,816 for Ontario 49 / Lotto 649). Early Bird draw odds is 1 in 4,967.

I've played Lottario a few times as the cost per play is cheap, the jackpots were close to 1 million and the odds were much better than Ontario 49, Lotto 649, LOTTO MAX.

 

Thank you for reading.