It goes without saying that the person with two lottery tickets in their hand has a better chance at winning than the person with one. But what if you could have, say, 30 lottery tickets from which you could win? That’s the idea behind a lottery pool, a group of people who buy tickets together and evenly share the winnings from those tickets.
Lottery pools have become popular among workplaces, families and even friend circles for a couple reasons: one, they offer a greater chance of payout, without spending extra money; and two, they are a great way to connect with people and play an exciting game.
Why Form a Lottery Pool?
You might be thinking: sure, you have a greater chance of winning as part of a lottery pool, but you walk away with a fraction of what you might have had if you’d struck off on your own. Yes, this is true, but where lotteries are concerned, it is better to increase your odds than increase your payout.
Besides, if you’ve seen the size of recent Powerball prizes you’d know that even a fraction of the jackpot is more than enough. Let’s say you had 30 people in a pool (a fairly large pool size), and the Powerball jackpot was $300 million (on the low end of what Powerball is capable of); every pool participant would still walk away with $10 million. That is a life-changing amount of money, any way you cut it.
How to Start a Lottery Pool
Getting a Group Together
The first and most important component of a lottery pool is willing shareholders. Ask around the office, get your extended family onboard, talk to your friends – essentially, do whatever you have to do to drum up interest.
Picking a Lottery
Often the first step of the process, you must choose which lottery to play. For one-time and continuous lottery pools, the obvious choice here is Powerball. It offers the highest jackpots in the world, and a level of gameplay that is both fun and easy-to-understand.
Drafting a Contract
You might not think you need a contract – after all, you know the people in your pool. But all that can change pretty quickly if you hit the $600 million jackpot. Without the terms and conditions clearly laid out and agreed upon in signature, things can get ugly when it comes to divvying the payload. Also, certain decisions like how you plan on receiving the money – lump sum or annuity – should be ironed out in advance.
Appointing a Pool Leader
Organizationally, a lottery pool runs much more smoothly with a leader or treasurer. Pinpoint the most trustworthy person in the room and ask them to keep track of payments received and winnings distributed. Have them collect buy-ins from the members, and keep a tally of everyone’s share in the winnings.
Once you have the gang assembled, the contract signed and the leader chosen, all there is left to do is choose your numbers. Use Powerball tools to help choose the most effective numbers, or place your fate in the hands of a random number generator. Then sit back, relax and wait for on of your many tickets to pay off big!
