If you’re in Thailand, chances are that you’ve seen a street vendor carting a wooden box full of lottery tickets strapped to a bicycle. It’s a trade that has been around for years and is one of the most popular ways for people to win money in the Land of Smiles. But even with the popularity of the game, some traders are finding it difficult to make a living. The military government recently passed a law reforming the lottery and it’s now up to people like Kamnang Wongsa to find new ways to make a living from selling their tickets.
Lottery tickets are sold in ticket pairs and are pre-printed with a number of anti-counterfeiting features. They are also sold at a variety of retail outlets. You can check the price on the back of the ticket or ask the dealer for an estimate. A single ticket costs 80 baht. The two types of tickets are Thai Government Lottery (TGL) and Thai Charity Lottery (TCL). The names are printed on the upper left of each ticket pair.
Aside from the normal prizes for matching all six digits in the first prize draw, there are also other prizes. Matching all of the numbers in the second prize draw will win you a prize worth B40,000. If you match all of the numbers in the third prize draw, you will get a prize of B10,000. There used to be bonus prizes for getting all of the numbers in the first, third and fifth prize draws, but those have been eliminated by GLO.
It’s no secret that Thais are superstitious folk, and many have come up with all sorts of ways to predict which numbers will be lucky. They may go as far as traveling to a sacred shrine to seek advice from the spirits. They may also consult with a wise elderly family member who can give them clues about the future. They might even count the number of pebbles in a certain basin, or try esiimsi, a form of fortune telling using bamboo sticks marked with numbers.
It’s important to keep in mind that lottery games are a form of gambling, and as such, over the long term you’ll likely lose money. But there are rare occasions where you can tip the math in your favor and have a chance to win big. If you’re ready to give it a shot, start by choosing the best numbers for you. Good luck!
