Scratch offs for pathetic people
Poll
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10 members have voted
What kind of crazy, desperate, lost soul would even consider buying such a thing?
Are people like that just problem gamblers who are trying to buy thier way out of poverty, or is the state reprehensible for even offering it?
Still, to be fair, such a ticket might be bought for an office lottery pool, or given as a gift to a lottery playing friend, or used as a party door prize, or offered as a white elephant present during the holidays etc.
So if you're semi-value playing (not that theres value in scratchoffs, at least here), you're better off saving your money up and buying a single ticket less often, IMO.
FWIW I think it is like a $100 slot. Good for publicity, and maybe gets some action here or there. Little marginal cost to have it available.
I've scratched off maybe 2 or three of them in my life, but I know someone who I would wager buys 50 per week, plus the winners get cashed in for more tickets.
They're like cigarettes or opiates or cocaine, scratch off's are their drug of choice.
I asked them why? They said they can afford it, doesn't matter if they win and they enjoy it. So I left it alone.
Bingo cards are ok too. But all the generic symbol/number matching games are boring.
Even harder to understand are the “Fast Play” games in PA and I’m sure other states. It’s a scratch off ticket with no scratching. It literally just prints out a receipt that tells you if you win or not.
Quote: Lovecomps
Are people like that just problem gamblers who are trying to buy thier way out of poverty, or is the state reprehensible for even offering it?
Yes to both.
Quote: LovecompsWhat kind of crazy, desperate, lost soul would even consider buying such a thing?
The same people who play slot machines, which have nearly identical payouts and level of engagement
Quote: LovecompsAre people like that just problem gamblers who are trying to buy thier way out of poverty, or is the state reprehensible for even offering it?
The answers to these questions should be the same for both scratch tickets at the gas stations and machines and tables at the casinos
Quote: gamerfreak
Even harder to understand are the “Fast Play” games in PA and I’m sure other states. It’s a scratch off ticket with no scratching. It literally just prints out a receipt that tells you if you win or not.
Genius. It's a modern day punchboard on an infinite scale.
Quote: rsactuaryI have purchased them before (in Texas, and not a lot) when the remaining top prizes compared to the total outstanding tickets offered tempting odds.
Are you Joan Ginther?
Quote: TomGThe same people who play slot machines, which have nearly identical payouts and level of engagement
The answers to these questions should be the same for both scratch tickets at the gas stations and machines and tables at the casinos
The state might be more in the wrong here.
For one thing, if you are a problem gambler you can do your best to steer clear of casinos. It's pretty tough to avoid gas stations, grocery stores and convenience stores.
Quote: RigondeauxThe state might be more in the wrong here.
For one thing, if you are a problem gambler you can do your best to steer clear of casinos. It's pretty tough to avoid gas stations, grocery stores and convenience stores.
Pay at the pump. No need to go inside a gas station/convenience store.
And don't grocery stores only sell scratch offs at the customer service window? Easy to steer clear of that, too.
Quote: TigerWuPay at the pump. No need to go inside a gas station/convenience store.
And don't grocery stores only sell scratch offs at the customer service window? Easy to steer clear of that, too.
No. At least not in IL. The kiosk for the scratch-offs and lottery tickets is self serve and generally right near the exit. At least at my local Jewel in Homewood, it is.
Quote: RigondeauxThe state might be more in the wrong here.
For one thing, if you are a problem gambler you can do your best to steer clear of casinos. It's pretty tough to avoid gas stations, grocery stores and convenience stores.
Someone can mash the button on a slot machine hundreds of times in the time it takes to wait in line, buy the ticket, check it, then go back to the cashier to exchange the winners and/or buy more . Worked in a liquor store and gas station from about 2000-05 and saw a few people who really pushed the boundaries of spending all their money on these tickets. But it was usually $20 at a time, a couple times during a shift. Watching point balances on your card at a casino, it's easy to gamble thousands at once. Reaching addiction level happens far more often in Las Vegas -- and with the speed of the games and denominations of the games, it goes far deeper.
That was in Massachusetts, which at the time had the most profitable scratch games in the country by having the payouts start around 85% for their worst games. Other states were as low as 50% and people just wouldn't get hooked on them -- and those states were ok enough with it to leave it alone. Being private companies having to report to share holders makes the casinos far more likely to search for a predatory business model than the state that can just turn to weed or a promise of an NFL stadium or anything else to come up with additional revenue.
Quote: LovecompsJust curious: If you buy one of these wasteful tickets do you lose $50 then and there, or do you win back $46 or so of the money on the ticket so they can jerk your chain around?
You'd be lucky if you won $46 on a $50 lottery ticket. You'd have better odds sitting down at a roulette table with $50.
Quote: TigerWuYou'd be lucky if you won $46 on a $50 lottery ticket. You'd have better odds sitting down at a roulette table with $50.
Well a lot of times say, on a one dollar ticket, you'll win a buck. The situation is really a push but lots of people see it as a win and so come back for more. So, again, is it $50 gone then and there or do you get some of the money back to tease you and make you come back for more until you finally go down the toilet?
Quote: LovecompsWell a lot of times say, on a one dollar ticket, you'll win a buck. The situation is really a push but lots of people see it as a win and so come back for more. So, again, is it $50 gone then and there or do you get some of the money back to tease you and make you come back for more until you finally go down the toilet?
I believe scratch offs should be either winners or losers. Buying a $5 ticket that wins $5 is a waste of time. I either want to lose my $5 or win $10 or more.
Quote: LovecompsWell a lot of times say, on a one dollar ticket, you'll win a buck. The situation is really a push but lots of people see it as a win and so come back for more. So, again, is it $50 gone then and there or do you get some of the money back to tease you and make you come back for more until you finally go down the toilet?
When you buy a scratch ticket it's always a loser. The person who sells it to you then rips it out of your hand and throws it in the trash. Then they punch you.
Quote: LovecompsWell a lot of times say, on a one dollar ticket, you'll win a buck. The situation is really a push but lots of people see it as a win and so come back for more. So, again, is it $50 gone then and there or do you get some of the money back to tease you and make you come back for more until you finally go down the toilet?
The minimum scratcher value in Florida is the face value of the ticket. If it is more than face value, it will usually be a multiple of face value. You won't see a single $5 win on a ticket that cost $10, for example. If you see one, it means you've missed a second (or more) winner on the same card, a multiplier symbol, something like that.
Can't speak for any other jurisdiction. Point being, you don't get "some" back on any tickets. At least your bet back, or lose.
Quote: beachbumbabsThe minimum scratcher value in Florida is the face value of the ticket. If it is more than face value, it will usually be a multiple of face value. You won't see a single $5 win on a ticket that cost $10, for example. If you see one, it means you've missed a second (or more) winner on the same card, a multiplier symbol, something like that.
Can't speak for any other jurisdiction. Point being, you don't get "some" back on any tickets. At least your bet back, or lose.
It’s that way in most states, but those break even winners are a majority of the 1 in 4.5 or whatever odds they present.
In PA they list the amount of winners per game and it shows most “wins” are break even.
Here is actual odds for a current $5 game. It show the odds of doubling your money and winning just $10 is 1 in 21.43. Crazy.
https://www.palottery.state.pa.us/uploadedfiles/PA-1404_Winner-Winner-Chicken-Dinner_DATA.pdf
Note that scratchers in my state's game have a sunset date and will not be honored after something like 90 days after the announced end of the game.Quote: GWAEIf HE is 50% as printed I wonder what it really is with the unclaimed tickets. Inhave about 20 in tickets from xmas that I haven't cashed yet.
