When looking at the buying habits of lottery players, it is easy to see that there are essentially two kinds of players; the causal player, and the hard-core player. Although they share many things in common, they also have very obvious differences that peg them as one type or another. Where do you think you fall in the scale of players: causal, very casual, a little hard-core or full blown addict? Keep reading to compare your playing habits with theirs.
Casual
The casual player is not about someone who only plays the lottery very seldom or every now and then. The casual player is a person who is laid back, calm, relaxed, and in control of their gambling activities, even if they regularly buy tickets once or twice a week. Casual players are ones that really know about the games they are playing. They have read the rules involving the games. They know the odds against them, of not only hitting the jackpot, but of hitting any other prize as well.
The casual player is frugal with their lottery budget. They know what tickets they are going to buy and allocate the funds for those purchases. They never overspend by buying more tickets than what they have budgeted for, no matter how high a jackpot might be. They play for fun only, understanding that actually hitting any win is a bonus.
They know that if they don’t win on a ticket, it is not a loss. They have not lost any money in playing the lottery. The money was used to buy a tangible object; a chance to win a prize. So that purchase of chance is money spent, not lost, regardless if they win anything or not.
As much as a casual player may spend on the lottery, they are not addicted to it, nor will they become upset, anxious, or fearful if they forget or are otherwise not able to buy a ticket for a draw. It is not an earth-shattering or life-altering situation. They will just continue to play with the next draw.
Hard - Core
Hard-core players seem to be the exact opposite of casual players. A hard-core player has the propensity to buy multiple lottery tickets for each game for each draw. They are usually feeling distressed or worried about winning, and how to pay for their gambling. They could look nervous, jittery, skittish, or tense. The may become angry if they don’t win, or could have a breakdown or anxiety episode. Their major fear is not winning the jackpot, which fuels the other emotions and actions.
A hard-core player may only have a fleeting understanding about the games they are playing. They don’t pay attention to the odds, and seem not to care, feeling that they can always beat the odds. Odds mean nothing to them and unfortunately, they end up believing that should have won each draw, as they are due to win.
They will be very spendthrift with their money. They don’t limit the amount of tickets they buy and will always overspend when the jackpot gets higher. Their one and only motivator is winning the jackpot and anything less is not acceptable, even second prize. In most cases, they are unable to control or stop their gambling.
They may feel like the lottery is taking or stealing their money. Every cent spent is a cent lost if the jackpot is not won. The concept of buying a chance is not understandable to them. And hard-core players may be addicted to gambling on the lottery and will always feel upset and anxious if they are unable to buy at least one ticket for every draw, or a large amount of tickets for one lottery with a record-high jackpot. Missing even one draw can send them into a full-blown panic attack.
So?
Of course there are going to be people on the extreme ends of these and in the middle. But the type of player you are is important to recognize. If you lean more towards the casual player, you are in control of your gambling. You recognize it’s about playing for fun and a win is a bonus. If you lean more towards the hard-core player, you may be close to becoming addicted to playing the lottery.
Take a moment to evaluate where you fall in this. If you are more hard-core, it might be wise to start clamping down on your gambling and take back control now before it’s too late. The more casual a lottery player you are, the more fun you will have in playing the lottery.