Despite its often-shady reputation, the lottery continues to be one of the two forms of legal gambling in Thailand. Its allure of sudden wealth binds people in a shared dream and fuels the spirit of optimism. Even if they never win, the experience of the bi-monthly draw provides a thrill that few can resist.
Lottery tickets are sold at retail outlets and online. The online version is the most popular and has many advantages over traditional lottery outlets, such as higher prizes, a wider range of numbers and credit purchases. It’s also more secure as the lottery website uses SSL encryption to protect your financial information.
However, the online option is not yet available for all countries. For example, in Australia, the official online lottery service is only available for people with Australian bank accounts. Nevertheless, it is possible to buy lottery tickets online from overseas by using a third party agent. This option is not ideal for everyone, but it can be a good choice for those who want to play without having to go to an official lottery shop or pay extra fees.
Thai people love their superstition and often use strange occurrences as clues for picking the right lottery digits. This explains why candles dripping down, messages from the cosmos disguised as mundane events and even the behaviour of random animals are often seen as a sign that a lucky number is about to be drawn.
Some Thais also claim that esiimsi, which involves shaking a cup full of marked sticks until a certain number falls out, is an effective way to predict the winning numbers. The Sawang Arom Temple in Phitsanulok is famous as a place where locals head to try this form of fortune telling.
Aside from these old-school methods, there is a new generation of lottery savants who are looking for ways to crack the code to the next big jackpot. These people come from all walks of life, but they all share a common passion for the game: the ability to calculate short odds on numbers marked by their own experiences and the oddities of life.
They’re a hard-working bunch, and the fact that they work at night while most people are asleep only adds to their appeal. But the truth is that, over the long term, they’re unlikely to get rich. In fact, it’s more likely that they’ll lose money than make it. This is because of the math that’s involved in lottery games, which over the long term always favors the house. However, there are rare instances where the math can be tipped in the player’s favor, but these are few and far between.
