The fact of the matter is that many Lotto players select their numbers thoughtlessly or foolishly. They are destined to lose even before the drawing takes place. Just by knowing the number combinations and patterns to avoid, you will have an advantage over such players.

There are players who like to bet the numbers that won someone else a big jackpot, and by doing so, they are almost guaranteed not to win one themselves. This is why According to mathematical probability the six winning numbers of a 6/40 Pick 6 Lotto drawing would repeat once every 36,907 years!!! This figure should also answer the question I am so often asked, "Shouldn't I keep playing the same set of numbers every week because they are due to hit sometime?" My answer is, "Only if you think you'll live for 36,907 years!"

In the Pick 6 Lotto drawings of just one state, each week more than 10,000 tickets are bought with the numbers 1-2-3-4-5-6. Even if these unlikely numbers did happen to win, what do you think a million dollar jackpot would be worth when divided among 10,000 winners?

Pattern betting is an even more popular method of number selection for players who lack imagination or skill. They select their numbers by making designs on their tickets, marking all the numbers in a row to make a straight line, either across or up and down. These combinations have been played on more than 150,000 tickets for just one drawing!! Another popular method that gets heavy play is the number multiples, especially 5-10-15-20-25-30. Those numbers are played on at least 25,000 tickets in each drawing. If those numbers hit with a $4 million jackpot, each winner would receive a single payment of only $160.

The majority of Pick 6 Lotto players like to play the calendar numbers, such as birth-dates and anniversaries. This means that the most heavily played numbers are 1 through 31. Most Pick 6 Lotto games have 40 or more numbers. If you play only the calendar numbers, you might be sharing your first prize jackpot with numerous other winners. I'm not saying that you shouldn't play your personal numbers if you feel they are lucky for you. But I would recommend that you throw in a couple of high numbers so that just in case they hit, you will win a prize that is worth something.

Most players have a tendency to bet the low numbers. This is obvious when you see consistently low prize payouts when four or more numbers are on the lower end of the range. When I see any set of winning numbers drawn, I can almost guess what the payouts will be for each prize category.

Lottery officials on television encourage players to bet their birthdates and anniversaries (the calendar numbers) because they don't want to see anyone win the lottery jackpot. They want to see the jackpot roll over and build with thousands of losing tickets so that they can advertise another record-breaking gigantic jackpot.

The prize payouts are always higher when the higher numbers hit because less winners are sharing the prize pool. Notice that the unwon jackpots usually occur when the winning numbers drawn were higher than normal. Now you have a few tips on what not to do; next time we'll look at some constructive methods you can use to start beating those odds and begin collecting Pick 6 Lotto prizes.

Yes it's true: Ellison Mansfield has made a career out of gambling. He's flown under the radar for virtually his entire adult life, beating the casinos and stockpiling his winnings. After holding onto these secrets and amassing a private fortune over the past 16 years, he finally decided it was time to come out and share some of his knowledge with the world. Please see insidersystem.com for the latest winning tips and strategies.