Lotto Texas Exposed — Go Big in Texas or Go Home!
Lotto Texas Review
Is everything really bigger in Texas as the saying goes? Let’s look at one of the state’s oldest lotteries to find out. Lotto Texas doesn’t have the most favorable format in the world, but for a state lottery, it sure hands out some pretty impressive jackpots.
The game is only available in Texas and if you live outside the US, you’ll have to stick to the international games that feature online ticket buying. Still, the ones lucky enough to be born in the right place have a wonderful opportunity to give it a try. The fact that a Lotto Texas ticket costs only 1 dollar doesn’t hurt, either.
Lotto Texas Overview
This was the first Texas in-house game that the Texas Lottery started offering in the winter of 1992. In just one year, the game became so popular that it sold tickets worth more than one billion dollars.
At the very beginning, Lotto Texas was defined as an annuity-only game. There was no cash option for jackpot winners to select. Also, there has been just one drawing per week. In May 1993, Texas Lottery added the cash value option and announced that a second draw would be held each week and would take place on Wednesdays.
How to Play?
Lotto Texas is relatively simple to play, but there’s a cool added twist and that twist can help you win more.
To win the jackpot, you need to match the 6 numbers for the respective drawing from the pool of 54 options. You can either use your own numbers or rely on the quick-pick automatic number generation option.
There’s an Extra! number, as well. The feature’s available for an additional payment of 1 dollar. The aim of the Extra! is to increase the lower prize tier winnings. Depending on the numerical combination that you’ve submitted, Extra! can make you up to 10,000 dollars richer.
Prize Tiers, Winning Distributions, and Odds
Hurray for Texas – the minimum guaranteed jackpot in Lotto Texas is 4 million dollars. If you’re an avid lottery enthusiast, you probably know that the guaranteed sum in state lotteries tends to be significantly lower in other places across the US. The odds of winning the jackpot in Texas Lotto are 1 in 25,827,165.
| Match | Odds |
|---|---|
| 6 | 1 in 25,827,165 |
| 5 | 1 in 89,678 |
| 4 | 1 in 1,526 |
| 3 | 1 in 75 |
The biggest jackpot ever in the history of Lotto Texas fell on June 19, 2004. The jackpot reached an unprecedented amount of 145 million dollars. Because of this spectacular number, the Texas Lottery Commission saw a massive increase in ticket sales over the month. In the month of June, the commission sold tickets worth more than 391 million dollars.
Some of the big Lotto Texas jackpots have also gone unclaimed. In July 2003, time runs out on the unclaimed jackpot of 5 million dollars. This was the fourth multi-million jackpot to remain in the hands of the commission since nobody came forward to make a claim. Though the ticket was purchased in San Antonio and the commission had access to some additional details, the lucky winner never came forward and remains unidentified till the present day.
Oh well, such is life! Let’s move forward to the other prize tiers and the sums that they bring to lucky winners.
People that get 5 correct numbers from the pool of 6 can expect a prize of approximately 2,000 dollars. The odds of winning the second prize tier are 1 in 89,678.
Having 4 correct numbers will produce a prize of 50 dollars and for 3 correct numbers, you’ll get 3 dollars. The odds of hitting the lowest prize tier are 1 in 75 and the overall odds of getting any prize are 1 in 71.
When the Extra! option is enabled, and things start looking a little bit different. With 5 correct numbers and an extra number, you can expect 10,000 dollars on top of the base prize. For 4 correct numbers, players will get 100 additional dollars. The 3 correct numbers will produce a prize of 13 dollars and an additional prize tier will become available, as well. People that have 2 correct numbers will get a symbolic prize of 2 dollars.
Collecting Prizes, Rules, and Regulations
As already mentioned, Lotto Texas tickets can only be bought from licensed retailers within the state. There are a few other important specifics to keep in mind, especially if you plan to win big.
As already mentioned, Lotto Texas jackpots are available in the form of annuity payments and a cash lump sum. You have 180 days from the date of the drawing to come forward and claim your prize.
Texas Lottery Commission regulations require the choice to be made prior to winning (which is different from the rules in many other states). Annuity payment is set as the default option for the game and if the player is interested in getting a lump sum, that decision will have to be announced through a change on the ticket itself. If no choice is marked on playslip, the ticket is considered invalid.
Prizes in the range of up to 599 dollars can be obtained from any authorized retailer. People that win an amount in the range of 600 to 2.5 million dollars have to address the Texas Lottery Claim Center. They are expected to download a Texas Lottery claim form from the official website and fill it out prior to requesting the payment.
Prizes that exceed 2.5 million dollars must be claimed from the Texas Lottery Commission’s headquarters in Austin. More information is available by phone at 800-37-LOTTO.
Finally, we need to talk about taxes. As unpleasant as the topic is, it’s a necessity. Prizes in the range of up to 599 dollars aren’t reported to the IRS and these sums are tax-free. Winnings that exceed 5,000 dollars, however, will be subject to a 25 percent federal withholding tax. For people who aren’t US citizens, the federal tax rate is 30 percent.
Can You Buy Lotto Texas Tickets Online?
Lotto Texas ticket purchases are available through an online platform TheLotter at the moment.
Also, you can visit the location of an authorized retailer to make your purchase. The good news is that a multi-draw option is available. This means that you can purchase tickets for up to 10 upcoming consecutive drawings at once.
Why You Should Play Lotto Texas
Pros:
Very low ticket price
A nice minimum guaranteed jackpot
Two drawings per week
There’s an Extra! feature that increases lower-tier prizes
Good overall odds of winning
Lower prizes are exempt from taxes
A portion of the money generated through ticket sales goes to support good causes
Prizes are paid in the form of either annuity payments or cash lump sums
Why You Shouldn’t Play Lotto Texas
Cons:
Lower prize tiers aren’t that impressive
The game has a 6 out of 54 format, thus the odds of winning aren’t too great
There’s a federal tax on the bigger prizes
There’s no online ticket-buying option
Is Lotto Texas Legit?
Are you excited about Lotto Texas yet? Lotto Texas is definitely worth a try!
The game is run and operated by the Texas Lottery Commission, a government-operated agency responsible for all of the legitimate games in the state of Texas. Some of the most popular games that the Texas Lottery Commission is responsible for include Texas Two Step, Texas Triple Chance, Pick 3, Daily 4, All or Nothing, Cash Fiver, and a range of scratch games. The commission is also responsible for Mega Millions and Powerball in the state.
The credentials sound pretty impressive and they truly are. You have nothing to worry about when buying Lotto Texas tickets.
Everything about the operations of the Texas Lottery Commission is legitimate. The Lotto Texas drawings are broadcast live via the webcast page set up by the agency.
On top of all that, the Texas Lottery Commission makes sure that some of the money generated through ticket sales goes to support good causes. Over the 19 years since Lotto Texas came into existence, 19 billion dollars have been given to charities and good causes. The Texas Lottery Commission supports predominantly education initiatives and veterans. Thus, if you need a feel-good element on top of the legitimate ticket-buying opportunity, you already have one.
Lotto Texas has some characteristics that make it much more impressive than other state lotteries. The fact that you can get your ticket for just 1 dollar contributes to the attractiveness of the game. The opportunity is completely legitimate, which is why you shouldn’t hesitate to give it a try and see what Lotto Texas is all about.
Neba Aymelek
I never won more than 2 or three numbers on any Tx games. when they change the prize to 25.000. on cash 5, I noticed that I was winning 2 numbers which only gave me qp. It continued for a while and after that not even 2 numbers which was odd. I’m pretty sure they are controlling those numbers. It might not be legit 🤔
christopher shackelford
I think the big lotto is just a joke because no one in texas ever wins the big jackpots and this is a texas game come on this is stupid
Farah Kahn
Shame that players can’t play this one online. I like the whole Extra concept that increases the non-jackpot prizes. On the downside, there is the usual federal taxes associated with US lotteries. Guess there is no escaping that one whether you are a resident or not.