Winning big will be rare indeed
Thursday, March 30th, 2006
By Chris Fitzsimon
J. Andrew Curliss, Staff Writer
Thousands of North Carolinians will buy scratch-off lottery tickets today, hoping to win big as the state offers the games for the first time in the modern era.
Most won’t take home a dime.
At 6 a.m. North Carolina was to become the 42nd state with a lottery. Officials say to expect lines for tickets at 5,000 convenience stores and groceries.
A cold fact many players know — but set aside — is that the odds overwhelmingly favor the state. That’s how officials can guarantee that the games will raise millions for education.
How long are those odds? Consider this: Six out of every seven tickets will not award a cash prize. Of the relatively few tickets that result in cash winnings, more than half will be for $7 or less. Even so, if North Carolina is like other states, several dozen of the biggest winners in the four inaugural games will generate headlines in coming weeks. But they will be lucky indeed, given that out of 104 million tickets:
* Ten will pay $100,000.
* Twelve are for $21,000.
* Fourteen are for $10,000.
* Thirty-five are for $5,000.
Lottery officials caution that people shouldn’t play to get rich. Instead, they say, the games are entertainment, a way to spend extra money and generate pleasant dreams of hitting it big. Besides, they say, profits go to education. (more…)
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