Couple Wins $1.5 Million in Britain's Lottery Twice in Two Years

             
          

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Quebec man 7 seconds too late for share of $27M lotto jackpot: Supreme Court

torontosun

OTTAWA — A Quebec man who bought a Lotto Super 7 ticket seven seconds after the deadline won't be able to collect half the $27-million jackpot and will also have to cover the court costs after the Supreme Court dismissed his case Thursday.

Joel Ifergan sued Loto-Quebec for $13.5 million, but Canada's top court wouldn't hear his arguments.

Ifergan went to the convenience store to buy two lottery tickets on May 23, 2008. The clerk told him he had to act quickly because the 9 p.m. deadline was quickly approaching.

The first quick pick was printed in time, but the second was printed seven seconds after the deadline and indicated it was for next week's draw.

Unfortunately for Ifergan, the winning numbers for the $27-milion jackpot appeared on the second ticket.

Another person had the winning numbers for the May 23 draw, which is why Ifergan sued for half the winnings.

Ifergan claims that once his order for the two tickets was placed in the terminal for the May 23 draw, the lottery provider was obligated to provide them for that date.

In May 2014, a Quebec Court of Appeal also rejected his case.

Cuba: Auge de los juegos prohibidos

Cubanet

Los números de la “bolita” (foto del autor)

Anddy Sierra Alvarez
LA HABANA, Cuba. – El aburrimiento de cuatro vecinos los reúne para jugar dominó en la calle. En cada partida terminada, el dinero corre por debajo de la mesa. Después de varias horas jugando, el más afortunado se va alegre para su casa. Los otros buscarán su suerte en la noche con la lotería de Miami.

Los juegos de apuestas en Cuba crecen como la espuma, a pesar de ser una práctica anterior a 1959 que Fidel Castro prohibió, hoy ya el cubano no se cuida de la cárcel como en el pasado. El crecimiento de la lotería (bolita), casi igual de apasionante que el béisbol, deporte nacional, se sigue día a día. Sobre otras prácticas como el juego de dominó o las cartas, antes escondidas en una casa de juego ilegal, en el presente, puedes tropezarte en la calle con jóvenes y adultos jugando “aparentemente” sin interés monetario.

La bolita

Miguel, de 44 años, no se despega del televisor a la espera de los números del CASH 3 y el PLAY 4, transmitidos por el cable ilegal. “Pago el servicio solo para ver los números. En cuanto termino, chequeo si me saqué algún numerito, además de compartir los resultados con los vecinos del barrio”, comenta.

Un “listero”, que quiso mantenerse en el anonimato, cuenta que él tiene un aproximado de 40 personas en su lista y recoge más de 3 mil pesos diarios. “Son muchos los que juegan. Por señalar, hasta los oficiales hacen su jugadita. ¿Qué pasaría si fuera legal?”, pregunta.

“El juego es simple”, dice Armando, de 43 años. “Necesitas solo un papel escrito con los números que vas a jugar y si te pones de suerte, un peso se convierte en mil”, explica.

El dominó

Jugando al dominó

Otra de las prácticas ilegales en la Isla es el juego de dominó apostando dinero. Jorge, de 34 años, jugador, comenta que en las tarde se pone a jugar dominó al dinero con varios amigos. “Jugamos en el patio a veces, pero la mayor parte del tiempo nos sentamos en la calle. Además de ganar un dinerito, estamos observando las novedades del barrio”.

Este grupo hasta ahora no ha pasado un mal rato con las autoridades, pero a media milla del lugar, a otro grupo de vecinos le decomisaron la mesa, el juego de dominó y una multa de 500 pesos de multa a cada jugador.

“Éramos 6 ahí presentes y cuando nos percatamos, ya teníamos qa la policía encima. No nos dio tiempo y a dos de nosotros les encontraron dinero. El policía nos ordenó ponernos de pie y descubrió que estábamos apostando. Pasamos una noche en El Capri (estación de policía de Arroyo Naranjo)”, cuenta Luis, uno de los presentes, de 28 años.

Las cartas

Cartas por dinero (foto del autor)

Las cartas también forman parte de los juegos de apuestas en la isla. Hubo un tiempo en que se jugaba apostando canicas entre los muchachos. Ahora, las apuestas son con dinero y a plena luz del día.

En una esquina del municipio 10 de octubre se reúnen desde adolescentes hasta adultos. A un lado juegan dominó y al otro cartas.

“La gran aceptación de la bolita o los demás juegos de apuestas en la sociedad se debe a la esperanza que le da al cubano el ganarse un dinerito que lo saque del apuro. Aunque también te puede llevar a la quiebra, es mejor que esperar a que te caiga algo del cielo”, confiesa Marta, de 58 años, una apostadora.

Sin embargo Marta se ha visto endeudada por tener mala suerte, hace poco terminó de pagar una deuda de 5 mil pesos. Pero sigue jugando, tratando de adivinar un número que le pague sus gustos.

Only in Canada: Ticketless lottery jackpot win $50 millions

GlobalToronto

An Ontario woman is about to become one of the richest women in the country, even though she can't find the winning lottery ticket she bought a year ago.

Cubanos llenan el "bombo" desde locales estatales

martinoticias

Luis Felipe Rojas

Los cubanos interesados en la lotería de visas para los Estados Unidos se han convertido en importantes clientes de las salas de navegación del estado cubano, desde donde llenan las solicitudes para emigrar.

“Aquí cerca del edificio del FOCSA abrieron una sala y normalmente no está tan llena, hay muchas personas haciendo la cola para aplicar a la lotería", afirmó el periodista independiente Hidelbrando Chaviano desde la capital cubana.

Por otra parte el reportero Alejandro Tur Valladares dijo que en Cienfuegos hay una "bombomanía" (para referirse al furor por la Lotería de Visas). "Hay unas ocho computadoras y entonces los jóvenes están asistiendo masivamente para llenar sus planillas y le están pidiendo a la empleada que se las llene. Igual traductores y profesores de inglés también han encontrado empleo extra con el llenado de las planillas”, indicó.

Emiliano González desde Bayamo reporta que es imposible conectarse desde los Joven Clubs de Computación, las empresas estatales o las conexiones ilegales que algunos tienen en la casa. "Pareciera que es desde Cuba desde donde bloquean esta página", dijo.

En cambio, desde el mismo Bayamo, Yoandris Argote Del Toro asegura que en los cibercafés "la gente está yendo de manera masiva, a hacer la lotería internacional, hay quienes se dedican a eso, a traducirles lo que quieran y así llenan las planillas”.

Mario Echavarría Driggs, un periodista independiente que visita la Oficina de Intereses de Estados Unidos en La Habana (SINA), afirma que en los alrededores de esta institución hay una fiebre de ofertas: “muchos ciudadanos se dedican a llenar planillas para emigrar, cobrando 5 CUC. Esas personas están a tres o cuatro cuadras de la SINA, pero lo asombroso es que estas personas tienen contacto telefónico con la embajada, ellos desde sus casa lo hacen y me han explicado que tienen conexión con la oficina de ETECSA por lo fácil que se conectan, pues hay personas que necesitan llamar, y desde provincia o desde sus casa no pueden hacerlo”, concluyó Driggs.

La "bolita": sueño para muchos cubanos

Diario Las Americas

POR IVÁN GARCÍA

La lista de la charada cubana/
lagartoverde.com

LA HABANA.- Llamémosle Alcides. Es alto y obeso. Tiene un negocio ilegal de fabricar jamones y chorizos caseros. Vende sus embutidos al por mayor a dueños de pequeñas tarimas particulares regadas por toda La Habana que ofertan ahumados, viandas y vegetales. En un día promedio gana entre 70 y 90 pesos convertibles (cuc).

Casi la mitad de sus ganancias la apuesta en la popular lotería clandestina, conocida en Cuba como la “bolita”. “Llevo dos meses detrás del 8. Cada día le pongo 30 cuc a ese número”, afirmó mientras se secaba el sudor con un gastado pañuelo.

Como Alcides, un gran número de personas en la isla están a la espera de un premio gordo. En su afán por lograrlo, lo mismo apuestan 10 pesos que 2.000 o 3.000. Incluso más. Hay quienes apuestan por necesidad, soñando con dar un “palo” en la “bolita”, que los ayude a solucionar sus penurias materiales. Otros son jugadores incorregibles.

“Existe toda clase de personajes en este negocio. Es el caso de un grupo de gerentes de cafeterías, tiendas y centros estatales de recreación, que una parte de la plata que se buscan se la juegan en la “bolita”. Gente que no se anda con chiquita. Apuestan fuerte. A mis ‘listeros’ [anotadores] les digo que a estos clientes especiales no les limiten ningún número. Tengo uno que apuesta hasta 100 dólares a un número, 40 a un ‘candado’ [varios dígitos] y 20 dólares a un ‘parlé’ [combinación de dos números]”, explicó Reinaldo, dueño de un banco habanero de lotería.

PROHIBIDA POR DECRETO

La “bolita” es el ejemplo perfecto de un entramado que funciona como un reloj suizo, a pesar de estar prohibido por decreto. A pocos meses de tomar el poder, Fidel Castro inició una batida contra el juego.

Los casinos se convirtieron en almacenes y milicianos furiosos con bates de béisbol destrozaron mesas de billar, ruletas y máquinas tragamonedas.

Todas las apuestas fueron prohibidas. Desde las peleas de gallos a la lotería. Fue entonces que en algunos barrios marginales de La Habana se inició la “bolita” de manera clandestina.

También comenzaron a expandirse pequeños casinos ilegales en casas particulares. Las batidas ocasionales de la Policía especializada contra los vicios no han logrado frenar los juegos de azar.

PENAS DE CÁRCEL

A pesar de que si te pillan al frente de un negocio de juego ilegal puedes ir tras las rejas hasta por 3 años, tipos como Marco creen que esas normas hace tiempo son letra muerta.

“Estuve preso en los años 70 y 80 por tener un banco de ‘bolita’. Pero ha llovido mucho. Enredadas con problemas mayores, las autoridades han desistido. No es raro que de vez en cuando deba repartir alguna comisión por debajo de la mesa a un oficial de la Policía. Ya no se considera un delito. Si te cogen jugando te pueden multar con 60 pesos (menos de dos dólares). Es lo más que te puede pasar. Aunque me preocupa que con esta nueva ofensiva contra las indisciplinas sociales promovidas por Raúl Castro, se inicien operativos de rigor contra los que manejan los hilos del juego prohibido”.

Algunos dueños de banco, “listeros” y colectores de lotería consultados por DIARIO LAS AMÉRICAS no creen que la campaña iniciada por el general vaya más allá de las palabras.

“La ‘bolita’ está enraizada entre los cubanos. Es difícil que en una localidad, independientemente de su poder adquisitivo, la gente no juegue. Es grande la aspiración a ganar una buena suma de dinero. En un barrio marginal como Mantilla o de clase media como Nuevo Vedado, la lotería funciona”, acotó Demetrio, un anotador de la ‘bolita’.

Según dueños de bancos de loterías, el negocio tiende a crecer. “En mi zona se realizan dos recogidas diarias. Si en 1995 mi banco recogía entre 10.000 y 15.000 pesos diarios, ahora doblo fácilmente esa cifra”, confesó.

Hace dos décadas, quienes apostaban tenían cierta cautela a la hora de jugar o conocer los dígitos premiados. Ya no. Pasada las 8 p.m. en una céntrica avenida, un custodio de una escuela, con tiza, pone en la pared de una parada de ómnibus los números que salieron.

SIGUEN LA LOTERÍA DE MIAMI

La “bolita” cubana es un clon de la lotería de Miami. Por radio o las clandestinas antenas por satélite se siguen los resultados. Para los pobres, ganar un “premio gordo” o un “parlé” es algo que puede estar a su alcance.

Hace unos días, un vecino de mi cuadra se ganó 79.000 pesos (3,100 dólares) y con ese dinero pudo comprar una cocina nueva y un televisor de pantalla plana. Yo rezo todas las noches a mis orishas [deidades afrocubanas], a ver si tengo igual suerte. Si gano un premio de 10.000 o 12.000 pesos (420 o 530 dólares), le puedo tirar las fotos de los 15 a mi hija y me quedaría para comprar carne de res y hasta un turrón español”, expresó Claudia, ama de casa.

Como casi siempre sucede en Cuba, el discurso oficial intentando controlar las ilegalidades va por un lado y la realidad por otra. Justo frente a una pancarta gigante con una cita de Fidel Castro sobre las cualidades que debe poseer un revolucionario, un listero de “bolita” hace su recogida todas las tardes.

Creator of Vietnam-era lottery draft dies at 88

Fox News

www.corbisimages.com

WALNUT CREEK, Calif. –  The former federal official who created the lottery for the draft during the Vietnam War has died at age 88.
Curtis Tarr died at his home in Walnut Creek, Calif., on Friday. His daughter, Pam Tarr, said Wednesday that her father died of pneumonia.
Tarr was appointed director of the Selective Service System in 1970, by President Richard Nixon.
Pam Tarr says her father wanted to eliminate an exemption for college students and make the draft more equitable. He instituted a lottery system based on birthdays that were picked on national television.
He later served as under secretary of state for security assistance, with responsibility for military programs with other nations.
Pam Tarr says her father probably would have described the lottery as his greatest responsibility, not his greatest achievement.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/06/26/ex-selective-service-director-curtis-tarr-creator-vietnam-era-lottery-draft/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+foxnews%2Fnational+%28Internal+-+US+Latest+-+Text%29#ixzz2XLTbAzN5

Powerball odds: 175 million to 1

courantblogs.com

agameofskill

By Anthony Kelzenberg for agameofskill.com

Playing the Odds?

This past week Powerball, the leading national lottery, made two changes to its program intended to produce larger, and more frequent, carryovers for its twice-weekly drawings.  First off, it DOUBLED the price of the wager from one dollar per combination to two dollars per combination.  To mitigate some of this increase in cost, the number of possible “Powerballs” in the sequence was cut from 39 to 35, meaning the odds of hitting the Powerball lottery on a single ticket went from 195 million to 1 to “only” 175 million to 1.  Here are the odds quoted for other activities seen in everyday life (source, Funny2.com).

Odds of…

Fatally slipping in bath or shower: 2,232 to 1

Injury from mowing the lawn: 3,623 to 1

Injury from using a chain saw: 4,464 to 1

Getting a hole in one: 5,000 to 1

Bowling a “300” game: 11,500 to 1

Being murdered: 18,000 to 1

Injury from fireworks: 19,556 to 1

Odds of dating a supermodel: 88,000 to 1

Being struck by lightning: 576,000 to 1

Winning an Olympic medal: 662,000 to 1

Drowning in a bathtub: 685,000 to 1

Being killed by lightning: 2,320,000 to 1

Being an astronaut: 13,200,000 to 1

Getting canonized (made a saint in the Catholic Church): 20,000,000 to 1

Killed on a 5-mile bus trip: 500,000,000 to 1

Looking at the above statistics, the ONLY activity more rare than hitting the Powerball lottery is dying while taking a very, very, short bus trip.  In fact, it is roughly 300 times more likely to be struck by lightning than it is to win the Powerball lottery.  I think it can be asserted that winning a large-payoff lottery is very difficult.  But what can we say about value of betting the lottery?  If it a “fair” wager?

Takeout and Cost of Entry

The “takeout” is the percentage of a wager pool that is removed before the remaining pool is distributed to the successful winners.  Ideally, a horseplayer should focus on pools having LOWER takeout, because more money is returned to successful bettors.  There are some wagers (Pick 5 or Pick 6 wagers, Super Hi5) where money is “carried over” because no one held a winning combination the previous day.  Sometimes these carryovers can make a pool with ZERO or NEGATIVE takeout if the carryover is large enough to compensate for the mandated takeout of the wager.

In the lottery (not just Powerball but all lotteries), the takeout is an abhorrent 50%.  In other words, 50 cents of every dollar spent on lotteries is taken from the players.  In pari-mutuel horse racing, where the bettors AS A GROUP set the payoffs, takeout varies, but typically it is 15% for win/place/show (“the straight pools”), 20% for exactas and daily doubles, and 25% for trifecta, superfecta, Pick 4s, Pick 5s, and Pick 6s (the “superexotics”).  The horseplayer, in addition to considering takeout and possible returns (the superexotics are generally the most difficult wagers to win, but have the best payoffs), should consider his or her EXPERIENCE and APTITUDES.  A losing wager is essentially a 100% takeout to the player.  When possible, horseplayers should stick with race tracks, types of races and track surfaces that produce success.  For example, if one isn’t good at evaluating unraced two year old maidens, pass those types of races until you feel you have a strong angle.

One more point to make on the superexotics – it is very common today for a superexotic combination to be purchased for 50 cents or less.  This gives the player the ability to “swing for the fences” by including more long shots on a budget, and I think this should be embraced by all players, even those not prone to stray from the straight pools or new players.  The reason is LEVERAGE.  Every added horse in a superexotic combination roughly ups they payoff by 5 to 10 times.  In past years even a $1 per combination cost could be prohibitive, but at 50 cents pretty much every fan has the potential to play a viable, yet modest trifecta or superfecta ticket for a total cost of $3 to $12, depending on ticket construction.  Also, this lower “cost of entry” is a possible alternative to lottery players that are seeing their costs to play not decrease, but indeed DOUBLE or TRIPLE (many daily lottery and scratchoff games are also increasing in cost).

As an experienced player, it’s amazing to me how little people in the “real world” understand how superexotic wagering functions at the race track and how it is possible to win a lot (maybe $1,000 to $2,000) without betting a lot (less than $20).  I would challenge the “powers that be” at the NTRA and the tracks to do a better job of educating not just regular, or semi-regular players, but the general public, that (1) As an industry we are making our games less expensive and easier to play, (2) Our games offer value not only to the professional player but to the novice as a game of chance and skill, and (3) We would dedicate a small percentage of national superexotic wagering to support equine health research, equine retirements and/or breakdown prevention.  There is a proven model for this approach – the pari-mutuel horse racing hub for Hong Kong, which handles more money than any other tote system in the world.  Most of the takeout in Hong Kong is used for local government-sanctioned projects and charities.

Conclusion

I have presented a case that the lottery is a terrible wager.  The odds of winning a super lottery like Powerball are incredibly against the player, and the takeout is outrageously high, even in the daily wagers. Consequently, the lottery is one of the worst bets in the marketplace.  Pari-mutuel horse racing, with its much lower takeouts, lower wagering costs and multiple wagering opportunities, is a much better system, not only for experienced players, but semi-regulars and novices to get involved at some level.

I challenge the NTRA and other industry leaders to recognize the positive aspects of modern-day pari-mutuel wagering and its potential not only to support our game, but support charities that as an industry we should get behind.

Powerball $590 million jackpot won by 84-year-old Florida woman

ITN

The Powerball $590 million jackpot has been won by an 84-year-old woman from Florida. Winner Gloria MacKenzie claimed last month's record Powerball jackpot and opted to take a lump-sum payment of nearly $371 million rather than collecting $590.5 million in 30 annual payments. Wearing dark sunglasses, Gloria left the lottery office on Wednesday without making a comment. She asked for privacy and referred any further inquiries to her lawyer and her financial adviser. The odds of winning were put at 1 in 175 million.

Portuguese-Canadian thought he won 40,000 but were 40 million [Video]

the portuguese are not raw, hard-working people but just go step and step and and sometimes get help.

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Maria Carreiro was thrilled to have won $40,000 – until her daughter took a second look at the winning  ticket and realized it was actually worth $40 million. Carreiro has playing the same lottery numbers for 20 years.

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US lottery winner died from cyanide poisoning just before he was to collect $425,000

mirror.co.uk

CHICAGO - With no signs of trauma and nothing to raise suspicions, the sudden death of a Chicago man just as he was about to collect nearly $425,000 in lottery winnings was initially ruled a result of natural causes.

Nearly six months later, authorities have a mystery on their hands after medical examiners, responding to a relative's pleas, did an expanded screening and determined that Urooj Khan, 46, died shortly after ingesting a lethal dose of cyanide. The finding has triggered a homicide investigation, the Chicago Police Department said Monday.

"It's pretty unusual," said Cook County Medical Examiner Stephen Cina, commenting on the rarity of cyanide poisonings. "I've had one, maybe two cases out of 4,500 autopsies I've done."

In June, Khan, who owned a number of dry cleaners, stopped in at a 7-Eleven near his home in the West Rogers Park neighbourhood on the city's North Side and bought a ticket for an instant lottery game.

He scratched off the ticket, then jumped up and down and repeatedly shouted, "I hit a million," Khan recalled days later during a ceremony in which Illinois Lottery officials presented him with an oversized check. He said he was so overjoyed he ran back into the store and tipped the clerk $100.

"Winning the lottery means everything to me," he said at the June 26 ceremony, also attended by his wife, Shabana Ansari; their daughter, Jasmeen Khan; and several friends. He said he would put some of his winnings into his businesses and donate some to a children's hospital.

Instead of the full $1 million over installments, Khan opted to take his winnings in a lump sum of just over $600,000. After taxes, the winnings amounted to about $425,000, said lottery spokesman Mike Lang. The check was issued from the state Comptroller's Office on July 19, the day before Khan died, but was cashed on Aug. 15, Lang said. If a lottery winner dies, the money typically goes to his or her estate, Lang said.

Khan was pronounced dead July 20 at a hospital, but Cina would not say where Khan was when he fell ill, citing the ongoing investigation.

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Powerball winners introduced to the nation: ’We’re still stunned by what happened’

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'It's not a lot,' winner of $377,000,000 jackpot says

Illinois couple in their 60s, claim share of $656 million Mega Millions prize

 

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

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Rhode Island woman, 81, wins $336 million Powerball

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Only Canadians: Couple misread $50M lotto ticket as $50,000

Canadian Press 

An Ontario couple say they didn't initially realize their winning lottery ticket featured so many zeros. JoAnn Champagne had to steady herself on a counter after learning she and her husband won the $50-million Lotto Max jackpot.

Mystery lottery winner at risk of losing jackpot

Statistics Prove Lottery Isn't a Game of Chance at All

by Leila Brillson

The lottery's appeal stems from the fact that anyone could be a winner; it is a game of chance. But Canadian statistician Mohan Srivastava, who has degrees from MIT and Stanford, has realized one completely "duh" factor. In order to receive scratch-off lottery tickets, a machine must first print the numbers, over which the latex is pasted. "It would be really nice if the computer could just spit out random digits," Srivastava told Fox News. "But that's not possible, since the lottery corporation needs to control the number of winning tickets. The game can't be truly random." Anything that can't truly be random, he concluded, can be hacked using statistics and laws of probability.

What he discovered was pretty simple: he looked for numbers that never repeated, increasing the likelihood that they'd appear underneath the scratch off. He was right, and his trick netted him winnings nearly 90-percent of the time. Since Srivastava wasn't interested in making money or ripping off the lottery, he duly reported his findings to the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation, which promptly pulled the flawed game.

In order for the lottery to be a true game of chance, gaming commissions all over North America wouldn't be able to control the frequency of the payout. Srivastava's discovery only confirms that there is nothing haphazard about the lottery; the game is designed to lure and entice consumers, preying on the hope that each ticket will be the "lucky" one. Unfortunately, the system is a little better crafted than that, and stats prove it.

#Canada - Ontario couple wins $50 millions jackpot but...must first obtain photo ID

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Stolen $12,500,000 jackpot stumps police

Kathleen Chung cashed in a winning ticket that wasn't hers, but cops still can't get back the cash. The problem