Picking " Lucky Numbers " !

Remember those days so long ago when the only choice for the suburban gambler was to buy a ticket in the lottery at the newsagency.   The number on that ticket was sheer random choice and when the lottery was drawn the results were published in the newspapers.  It was the custom to preserve the ticket and check the result to see if you scored even a small win.  Much of the money to build Sydney's Opera House was gained from such a special lottery.

The first move to widen gambling horizons came when Australians were permitted to bet on " the Pools ".  This was a form of betting that revolved around the results of English soccer games and the results were determined not only by the winning club but by the margins by which they won or lost. For many who did not follow soccer it became a random number pick and like the results of all forms of gambling, a win became a matter of sheer luck.

Then came the introduction of Lotto in Australia.   The big difference was that the player had the choice of picking their own numbers - and so began the era of many people betting week after week with their own " lucky numbers ".   Players were offered a choice.  Pick their own, or have the computer generate random numbers and of course the numbers that won the major prize were also selected by that same method.

Today, Lotto takes many forms and there is a distinctly separate game drawn on just about every night of the week.  In each case, a smaller number of options are available from which to make a choice.  Those options are displayed on numbered balls and when the draw takes place the winning six number collation decides the major - and lessor - prize winners.  How those numbers are drawn depends on the style of play and that is what attracts individual players.

All this has come a long way from the days when the state lottery draw was open to the public and they watched as a huge barrel was produced containing thousands of glass balls, each of which contained a number which corresponded to every ticket sold in that lottery.   It was a time consuming spectacle because a rod was thrust into the barrel and on withdrawal it contained the winning number for every prize on the nominated list of rewards.   In todays computer era, once the winning numbers are selected, the computer can instantly name the ticket holders on which luck has bestowed its favour.

Now the Lotto people are introducing a new competition and that has several of the gambling regulators worried.   This is termed " Jackpot Betting " and the winning numbers are derived from a complex of extracting  specific movements in world finance markets which will be tabulated into a very long number - from which those winning numbers will be extracted.    Somewhere in that maze it seems that random choice " Jackpot " prizes will occur.

It is quite possible this contravenes some of the law that pertain to gambling but the main objection is that how the winning numbers are obtained is no longer crystal clear to the participating public.  The fairness of that giant barrel with thousands of numbered balls was evident for all to see.   The present Lotto - in all its forms - has similar clarity.   The gambling regulators are very keen to keeping it that way !