When it comes to trying to win lottery jackpots, numbers naturally play a key role. Just how do you choose them, and should they be changed? What if the wrong numbers are published for a lottery draw. All three of these situations have come up in the past week or so.
Lorna Hart from Gosport in Hampshire made a last-minute decision that went terribly wrong. She had swapped the usual numbers she played for EuroMillions and used them on the Hotpicks game instead. A lucky dip was then played in the EuroMillions draw.
Big mistake because if the usual set of EuroMillions numbers had been used, she’d have had all five of the main balls and won £3.6 million. Those numbers had been chosen because they have personal significance for her. They have even more now after not using them prevented her becoming a millionaire.
“I feel a bit deflated,” said Lorna. The unlucky player has ME so a big win would have changed her life for the better. She has seen the lighter side of the mistake and Lorna will be celebrating with cake rather than champagne.
There were more wrong numbers in the USA this week. The May 10 Mega Millions draw took place and the number 06 was the all-important Mega Ball. However, the number was incorrectly stated as 09.
The correct result was given later on the Mega Millions website. Prize payments were suspended as several tiers do include the Mega Ball being matched. The next draw has a $99 million jackpot. Good luck with that one as it takes place on Friday the 13th.
One ticket holder who didn’t have any problems with their numbers on Tuesday was the £184 million EuroMillions jackpot winner. The winning ticket was sold in the UK and the winner has already claimed what is the largest ever EuroMillions win by a UK player. There’s no news on just who the winner is.
It’s not all about numbers though. There’s the UK Millionaire Maker code too. One player in Portsmouth was lucky enough to win £1m that way last November. However, the win hasn’t been claimed in time and it will go to good causes instead. Many winnings are lost this way as players simply forget to check the code if their numbers fail to win anything.
Anyone who managed to stay awake during maths lesson will know what Pi is. Jonathan Ruby from Raleigh in North Carolina, USA, does. Good job too as it won him a $192,941 Cash 5 jackpot. Pi begins with 3.1415 and Ruby used them for his lottery numbers. 3-14-15-31-41 saw him become one of three players to share a $578,823 top prize.
“I kept seeing that number so my karma told me to use it,” said Ruby, whose house number as a child was 314. The bartender will receive $137,012 after paying state and federal taxes. He plans on using his winnings to pay off bills and save the rest for his retirement.
