Oh it’s a Saturday night, and we’re all sat around, waiting expectantly for good ole Arthur to warm up his balls. Nope, it’s not the opening line to a carry on film; it’s a description of the penultimate moment before we all jump up screaming “We’ve won the lottery!” Yes, the weekly gathering in our front room is reminiscent of something from the Royle Family, and we are all desperately hoping that the numbers come up. The national lottery has definitely come a long way in the UK since its introduction in 1993 and has firmly established itself as a British institution.
Upon discovering that we haven’t won the national lottery, we duly have another cup of tea and wonder what we’ll do with ourselves until we get another chance next week. Although this disappointment undoubtedly doesn’t come as a hard hitting let down, it does take its toll. Lottery gamers don’t necessarily think that they are going to win, ergo, rarely show terrible disappointment upon only having one number. Whereas other forms of gambling tend to have much more dramatic consequences.
I believe this is due to the type of gambling that the national lottery portrays itself to be. It is a game of chance, not cunning thinking and strategic planning, therefore the notion that the game is based on the luck of the numbers encourages the player to believe that it just isn’t their time yet, but maybe next week will be. Compare this to someone who bets on the horses, or plays poker. The more skill that appears to be involved, the higher the stakes at play and the harder the loss comes.
Horse racing is a classic example. Many people place a bet or two without really knowing much about the form of the horse, the course, or indeed the race at hand. Some of these bets can be of a substantial amount of money, but the less knowledge about the gambling subject the gambler has, the smaller the bet will be. A seasoned follower of the races will know a thing or two and be comfortable placing a bet of thousands of pounds because he or she believes that they have a good chance of winning. Undoubtedly, losing the bet will come harder to the person that placed the larger bet than the one who decided to just have a go.
This can be compared yet again to those that engage in the game of poker. This game involves calculation and skill as well as working with chance. Those that play poker often bet with vast sums of money, to a degree where houses can be thrown in to the bet if money has run out. If a poker player loses a game, then the consequences are as expected dire.
But does the theory that the chance to skill ratio predicts the level of emotion shown upon loss really stand up? Not in a game of roulette, which is basically a glorified lottery game. There is no skill, only chance in trying to guess the correct number or colour and yet vast amounts of money can be bet in a game. Maybe playing the National Lottery can’t be classed as gambling at all, and should be seen as a bit of fun for the family, that could ultimately scoop millions.
Dominic Donaldson is an expert in the entertainment industry. Find out more about the National Lottery including the latest results and overseas lotto games on the National Lottery website.
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