IN THE MONEY I’m a lotto expert – you can use the Singleton Method to beat the system and win big with scratchcards

WINNING big at scratchcards is meant to be a game of luck.

Players pick randomly selected cards and each have an equal shot of picking up the jackpot.

One lottery expert devised The Singleton Method which meant looking out for the single numbers on visible digits on the front of a ticket.

But there might just be a way to predict the numbers hidden on the ticket, according to one lottery expert.

In 2003 Mohan Srivastava noticed that there might be a flaw in certain scrathcards if you analyzed their layout.

He devised The Singleton Method which meant looking out for the single numbers on visible digits on the front of a ticket.

Statistician Srivastava found that if a visible number appeared the one time it would also be under the scratch off area.

By plotting the numbers and finding three singletons in a row players could in theory see where the winners are.

Srivastava told ABC in 2011: “The tickets are clearly mass-produced, which means there must be some computer program that lays down the numbers.

“Of course, it would be really nice if the computer could just spit out random digits.

“But that’s not possible, since the lottery corporation needs to control the number of winning tickets.

“The game can’t be truly random. Instead, it has to generate the illusion of randomness while actually being carefully determined.”

It is unclear how many tickets still could fall foul of the method but casino.org noted in 2020 many had taken steps to redesign their cards.

They said in a blog post: “Most scratch card manufacturers have caught onto this strategy and a large number now design their scratch cards to work against it.

“But there are still a few who’ve not yet taken steps to address it.

“You can use it on the type of scratch cards where numbers are visible on the side, so it’s a method still worth pursuing.”

On Tuesday The Sun reported on a list of the best ways to help you secure a win when playing the lottery.

Experts say buying the cards that are slightly more expensive means bigger prizes.

“You would be better off buying higher-priced scratch cards but buying fewer,” the blog adds.

“Quality over quantity is very true when it comes to scratch cards.”

Other tactics include checking the odds of winning in the small print, buying more than one ticket at once rather than single cards multiple times if you can afford it and watching out for games and stores that have not had a win in a long time.

The blog compares that tactic to “slots players who loiter around machines to wait until players go on a dry spell or a number of players fail to hit a jackpot prize”.

“The long drought can mean that the slot machine is about to hit,” they add.

Players should also keep their old games and submit all cards for checking in case they’ve missed a win.

“You never know, you might pick up on a mistake you might have made at a later date,” the blog adds.

“The only way you can be absolutely sure you haven’t won is if you have your ticket officially checked.”

Studying the cards can also reveal clues, casino.org claims, and stick to the one game.

As always with any gamble, only spend what you can afford to lose and be strict with your spending, they note.

The blog adds: “Set yourself a weekly or monthly budget and make sure you stick to it, so your finances don’t spiral out of control.”

Lottery fan and TikToker “videovixs” recently revealed a strategy in a video that helped her win twice on four scratch-off tickets.

And player William Newell had a really good stretch of luck in October last year, leading Lady Luck to deliver him $100,000 in lottery prize winnings.

His winning formula?

The Alexandria, Virginia resident bought 20 identical lottery tickets online that shared the winning number combination – and it paid off.

A lottery expert, who goes by Billy John on TikTok, has laid out several things you should avoid the next time you go to buy a lottery ticket.

For more, another lotto expert shows how you can mathematically improve your odds of winning.

And another who goes by Richard Wheeler believes players can improve their chances by selecting high numbers.