The logic behind scratch cards
How to Win with Scratch Cards: Tips & Tricks
Scratch cards are entertaining and promise a jackpot chance at a comparatively low ticket price. Depending on the type of ticket, there are attractive main prizes and instant prizes of medium amounts that are not to be scoffed at.
As with lotteries, luck and chance alone decide, so there is no method for guaranteed winnings.
But we will show you a few tips and tricks with which you can at least improve your chances of winning a little.
How to Improve your Chances of Winning Scratch Cards
Instant scratchies are an impulse buy for some players when running errands at a retail outlet anyway.
Others look specifically for specific ticket numbers and scrutinize tickets and conditions before purchasing.
Whichever type you are, our following tips and tricks can help you improve your chances of winning with scratch tickets.
1. Don’t Buy the Cheapest Tickets
There are a considerable number of different scratch cards available. Most buyers only look at the ticket price and the potential prize. However, choosing the right ticket is the most important way you can influence your chances of winning.
It is not always advantageous to buy a more significant number of scratch tickets at a favorable price than to buy a single ticket for the same amount. The basic rule is quality before quantity.
By the way, we have compared scratch tickets and presented you with the best ones in Australia.
2. Pay Attention to the Small Print
As with lotteries and all other types of gambling, you should pay attention to the terms and conditions of scratch tickets, which are typically hidden in the small print. This is where the exact odds of winning are listed.
These are determined by the total number of tickets in circulation and the number of possible payouts above the ticket price.
A distinction must be made between the lower chance of winning a jackpot and the available opportunity of winning, i.e., the probability of being paid an amount. For example, the chance of winning a jackpot can be 1: 100,000, the general chance 1: 10.
Tip: A lower number is always advantageous! Also, read our explanation of the odds of winning scratch cards compared to lotteries and other games of chance.
3. Buy More than One Ticket
Many players swear by the benefits of buying more than one ticket at a time. In any case, it saves you time than going to the point of sale several times. Fans of scratch cards have a similar attitude to surprise eggs: there is a prize in every seventh egg or ticket.
If you buy a consecutive number of tickets, you could end up with a winning card. However, be careful not to exceed your budget when purchasing multiple tickets.
4. Play Scratch Cards like Pokies
The worst possible time to start playing a pokie is the moment immediately after a win. After a payout, the “perceived” probability that the pokie machine will pay out again within a short time is the lowest. Conversely, it is advantageous to take over a pokie after a long “dry spell.”
Transfer this principle to scratch cards and play them like a pokie machine in the arcade. With this method, observe other buyers see if they have bought winning tickets or studs.
You can also ask the seller in a friendly way whether they have sold winning tickets in a day or not.
How Scratch Tickets Work
Scratch tickets are available at sales outlets such as kiosks, newsagents, tobacconists, and petrol stations. Depending on the ticket, you scratch different fields free and usually receive a prize for identical numbers or symbols.
Smaller amounts are paid out directly by the seller as instant winnings; the jackpot is typically given to you by the organizer.
5. Keep Your Tickets
Do not throw away your rivets immediately after scratching. It is always possible that you did not check a ticket carefully in your disappointment. Some winnings only become apparent at a second or third glance later.
In addition, it happens that a jackpot is not won in a run of tickets. The organizer may be looking for the best rivet to crown a winner!
6. Send in Your Rivets
Ultimately, the organizer decides on the winnings. Have your tickets officially checked and send in all your played scratch cards. Maybe there is a prize behind one of your scratch cards after all, or you are entitled to a payout due to a misprint.
7. Check the Scratch Fields Before you Buy
Many players look for clues on the ticket itself to reveal whether it is a loser or a winner. The method is most familiar with tickets with three scratch-off squares next to each other and where the squares are labeled with a number.
Here, you have to look for single numbers, i.e., numbers that only appear once on the ticket. This could be 11, for example. It is a single number if no other field is labeled with an 11.
If three single numbers appear next to each other, it is most likely a winning ticket!
8. Set Yourself a Budget
Determine how much money you have available for scratch tickets in a certain period and do not exceed this amount. This way, you limit your losses and make sure you don’t spend money on gambling that you need for other things.
Consider this budget as the amount you spend for pleasure and have fun with it.
9. Decide on a Lottery Ticket and Stick With It
Once you have found the type of lot that suits you, it is best to stick with it. Always buy the same kind of scratch ticket, eventually, draw a winning ticket and gradually eliminate the losers. This is a better strategy than spreading your budget over many different tickets in the long run.
As mentioned at the beginning, there is no simple trick to a guaranteed win on scratch cards. Please don’t lose sight of the fact that it also depends on luck and that Fortuna must be in your favor.
However, the scratch card tips and tricks we have described will not hurt your chances of success at all.
Good luck!