However, on that day, I saw many people fluttering at lotto.. Woooaahh! I was thinking if I'll try my luck but then, I have thought that it's impossible. lol. I don't expect too much. People are dreaming to be an instant multi-millionaire. Those who fall in line at Lotto Booth has a strong imagination and determined for they have the chance to win. Gambling.. Gambling... Nobody cares if they win or loose as long as they were happy on what they were doing and have a faith on every digits they draw... How was that? But I'm not a gambler. that's the good part of me. Hahahaha!
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MANILA, Philippines— (UPDATE 3) Two bettors from Luzon won on Sunday night the P347.8-million jackpot for the 6/49 SuperLotto, the biggest prize since online gaming was launched in the country in 1995, according to the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).
After 21 draws, two bettors finally picked the winning combination: 6-12-20-26-33-34.
Because no one won the prize before Sunday night’s draw, a number of bettors suggested that the prize be divided into several draws.
“We cannot divide the pot because it will be a violation of the rules of the PCSO,” said PCSO spokesperson Larry Cedro.
Cedro said the PCSO wished many would pick the winning combination so there would be more than just one winner.
The agency said that sales between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Sunday reached P9 million.
“The sales in just four hours were a record and are still picking up. Reports from the ground said the influx (of bettors) was expected to continue until 8:30 in the evening (the closing time),” Cedro said.
By 8:30 p.m., the pot had risen to P347.8 million.
The PCSO has advised lotto patrons to place their bets early to avoid long queues.
Only Filipinos 18 years old and above are allowed to place bets.
“To make at least half of [the 50 million voters registered with the Commission on Elections] play lotto would be good for the PCSO and its charity projects,” Cedro said.
No one was able to correctly guess the six-number combination of 35-01-42-36-41-22 on Thursday, when the cash prize was P288,146,473.20.
The jackpot on Feb. 19 exceeded last year’s record pot of more than P249 million, which was won by a construction worker from Novaliches, Quezon City, in April 2008.
No ceiling
“As long as there’s no winner, the pot will increase depending on the sales,” Cedro said.
Despite the increased sales, the agency has not run out of bet slips and thermal paper.
“We have sufficient supply of materials for the bets and there’s no need to print more,” he said.
The lotto bug has bitten the rich or famous, like businessman Willie Fernandez, art collector and dealer Louie Cruz, and Navotas City Mayor Toby Tiangco.
“I never liked gambling, and I consider lotto one because it’s a game of chance. But if I win, I will donate my winnings to charity and sponsor scholarship programs for deserving but poor students to go to reputable schools,” Fernandez said.
Fernandez, who is engaged in various business ventures, lives in upscale Ayala Alabang Village in Muntinlupa City and holds office in his own three-story building in Makati City.
“Since I was based in Germany, I already placed bets on lotto, and that continued when I moved here several years ago,” Cruz said.
He said that in all the years he was betting, he only won several hundred pesos.
“I usually guess three numbers correctly and I don’t repeat winning numbers,” the art dealer said.
Tiangco told the Philippine Daily Inquirer that the huge pot was attracting even non-bettors.
“I don’t place bets in lotto, but when the pot breached the P100-million mark and was increasing, it made me think and attracted me to bet,” the mayor said.
Asked what he would do with his millions should he win, Tiangco said: “What to do with the prize is not a problem, but winning is.”
For Alexander Portugal, 23, a restaurant owner in Mandaluyong City, the jackpot is an inspiration of sorts.
“I know it’s an impossible dream to win the jackpot, but I still bet because it inspires me that someday, I will be rich,” Portugal said.
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