Diamond 7's Gets Better and Better

Over 350,000 Diamond 7's tickets were sold over the past two weeks without surrendering a Grand Prize. There remains two $77,777 Grand Prizes with odds of 208,000:1 to win one. That is 50% better than any other game currently for sale. The problem is that an estimated 14% of the float remains which means that they are likely already hard to find. The game also suffers from a slightly reduced Grand Prizes as a result of the theme of the game. Two weeks ago this game was a luke warm choice. It is now clearly the best game currently available for sale.

What is noteworthy at present is the poor ratings on all of the $10 games and the sole $20 game. One should expect that at least one or two of these games should be well rated. That is not presently the case.

Top Rated Games

1. $5 Diamond 7's - Get em while you can. 
2. $3 Super Bingo #3017 -  2nd highest percentage of $ returned to small prize winners. 
3. $3 QFG Crossword #3208 - Solid game but 2 million:1 to win $50,000?
4. $3 Fruit Explosion #1834 - Second best top prize ratio currently for sale. 
5. $5 Cross Tripler #1810 - Rates well on both factors. 

Games to Avoid

1. $4 Double Cash For Life - only 1 GP left and almost 5 million tickets. It's over for this game.
2. $2 Black Jack - Still flogging these dogs. Shame. 
3. $10 Bejeweled - Poorly rated on both scales. 
4. $5 Hit Jackpot - Has nothing going for it. 
5. $2 Cash For Life - Very poor top prize ratio of 63%.

Games To Play If You Only Care About the Grand Prize

1. $4 Double Cash For Life
2. $10 Bejeweled
3. $5 Diamond 7's
4. $20 Extraordinary
5. $5 Money Multiplier

Games With No Grand Prizes Left

• $3 Words With Friends
• $3 Wheel of Fortune
• $3 Crossword 3207
• $3 Cashingo
• $2 Blackjack

Comings and Goings

The former top rated game, 20X Lucky was retired this past week. The game had one of its 7 Grand Prizes remaining and an estimated 16% of the float left to sell. My actual results on the game were poor. I bought, in total, 33 of the tickets, winning on six of them for a total of $85. Even when eliminating any prize of $100 or more, I should have expected to have enjoyed two more winners and an additional $17. 

Personal Play

Bad bad bad. So bad that I took a week off as some of our posters have done of late. Maybe nature is telling me to forsake this endeavour and instead get outside. If so, I agree with nature. 

In Conclusion

This from the Sault Star, "Sault Ste. Marie can let the opportunity of creating a lottery and gaming centre of excellence pass it by, or it can be poised and ready to embrace new technology and grow industry, the Chamber of Commerce was told Wednesday."\

A lottery and gaming centre of excellence?! Is this the new euphemism for a casino? I'm impressed that the OLG brass have not been discouraged by communities saying no to their plan to "improve" those communities by plopping a casino into them and letting a foreign casino operator run the business. Good thing that the OLG does not run crack houses or they would likely re-brand them as "opiate usage centres of excellence."

It is also noteworthy that the OLG is now using conditional language in their discourse around modernization. Numbers are now goals and estimates. That is not the language used in the OLG Modernization Plan. What happens when the OLG not only fails to increase its contribution to the provincial treasury by its stated $1.3 billion but actually begins to return less than it does today? Well, the answer will be nothing as it will all be too late. And who will be held to account? Certainly not Stephen Rigby; he just got there. And Rod Phillips is safely ensconced with Paul Godfrey at the National Post. It will be interesting to see how it all evolves.


Doug

    

Diamond 7's Still Looking Good

The top rated game plowed through an estimated 45,000+ tickets without surrendering a Grand Prize last week. Your odds to win one of the two remaining outstanding prizes are now just under 300,000:1 compared to the 437,000:1 at the outset of the game. The game also sports the best revenue return to small winners of any $5 game. I know, the Grand Prize is disappointing at $77,777.

Top Rated Games

1. $5 Diamond 7's #1822 - Good all round choice. 
2. $1 Wild 8's #1813 - A $1 game in 2nd place? An unusual circumstance. 
3. $10 Classic Ruby #1792 - Working its way back up after coughing up a Grand Prize. 
4. $3 QFG Crossword #3208 - Good numbers but 2 million to one to win a $50k GP!
5. $3 Bingo #3016 - Playable, if you don't like the others. 

Games to Avoid

1. $4 Dbl CFL #1170 - Horrible small prize availability. OTOH, better than Lotto Max. 
2. $2 Black Jack #1804 - All GPs gone long ago. Still sold 65,000 tickets last week, 
3. $10 Bejeweled #1786 - Lowest small prize return of any $10 game. Negative Top Prize ratio.
4. $3 Wheel of Fortune #1809 - All Grand Prizes claimed. 
5. $2 Cash For Life #1169 - 4 good Grand Prizes left for $2. Negative Top Prize ratio.

Best Games if Your Priority is the Grand Prize

1. Double Cash For Life
2. Bejeweled
3. Fortune
4. Extraordinary
5. Diamond 7's

Games With All Grand Prizes Claimed

• Crossword #3207 - Most you can win is $100. Sold 90k of them last week!
• Words With Friends - Top two prize categories claimed. 
• Wheel Of Fortune - Pat and Vanna are laughing
• Cashingo
• Blackjack

Comings and Goings

Nothing to report. That may be a first!

Personal Play

Another bad week returning $22 on a $48 investment. Also lost $10 on the Gatineau Olympiques 50/50 draw. Go Ol Go! That Rimouski team looks awfully good.

In Conclusion

A CBC piece on the subject of on-line gambling. http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/online-gambling-is-it-worth-the-risk-for-governments-1.3001653 .

The OLG is simply following the path forged by similar organizations in districts across the US and Canada. They use the same tired drivel to explain their vision and the benefits that they provide to all Ontarians. We do know that Electronic Bingo has been a bust to date. That was one of the first planks of their so-called "modernization". Not surprising. People who go to Bingo halls go with friends and enjoy getting game sheets and daubers lined up for the action. Replacing that with touch screens is not going to do the trick.

The OLG estimates that it loses $400 million  to off-shore gambling sites. How much of that is coming back with the advent of www.playolg.ca? Not much, in my estimation. Pokerstars and the likes of Betfair are not worried in the least. What it may do is cannibalize casino returns as some players will choose to play slots at home rather than drive in to the casino. That fact, of course, has the effect of lowering bids from private companies who are vying to run facilities in the province. We'll see how it all unfolds but I will not be surprised if the whole thing turns into nothing other than shedding payroll for employees currently working and paying taxes to the province.

Spring is here and we can all think of better things to do than scratch tickets.

Doug

Diamond 7's Ascends To The Throne

Last week's games of choice, Classic Ruby and 20X Lucky, each lost a Grand Prize knocking them down the list. Percolating to the top is Diamond 7's. This game has two of its original 7 Grand Prizes left and an estimated 23% of its float left. There is a positive ratio of 1.19 when comparing the number of Top Prizes remaining and the prize money associated with those prizes. 60.6% of the revenue for the game is returned to players who win less than $100. You have one chance in 437,000 to find one of the $77,777 Grand Prizes.

Top Rated Games

1. $5 Diamond 7's #1822 - Luke warm top choice. A poster has had good luck with the game. 
2. $3 QFG Crossword #3208 - Lots of small prizes and a positive ratio.
3. $1 Wild 8's #1813 - Mrs. Vader's favourite game after a $100 win. 
4. $5 Cross Tripler #1810 - Decent choice.
5. $10 Classic Ruby #1792 - Took a hit last week. 

Games to Avoid

1. $4 Dbl CFL #1170 - Great Grand Prize; nothing else. Negative ratio. 
2. $2 Black Jack #1804 - Worst ratio of any game. 
3. $10 Bejeweled #1786 - Poorly rated on both factors
4. $3 Wheel of Fortune #1809 - Devoid of Grand Prizes
5. $2 Cash For Life #1169 - Nice Grand Prize for a $2 game. Nothing else to recommend. 

Top Games If You Only Want The Grand Prize

1. Double Cash For Life
2. Classic Ruby
3. Bejewelled
4. Money Multiplier
5. Extraordinary

Games With All Grand Prizes Claimed

• Black Jack
• Crossword #3207
• Cashingo
• Wheel of Fortune
• Words With Friends

Comings and Goings

No games were retired this week.

Welcome to Fruit Explosion #1834. An earlier version of the same game was the top rated game for a while and ultimately retired with the OLG becoming the winner of unclaimed Grand Prizes. It is a bread and butter $3 game. Check CL66's review in the comments to last week's blog entry. He rates the game as 11th overall; I have it at 10th.

Personal Play

After two good weeks of results I took a predictable drubbing last week. I expect that I felt a lot like the Maple Leafs do this morning. I have also begun to include all "lottery" games in my overall results. That includes the LTL games for which I won nothing after a $30 investment, and even the $10 worth of 50/50 tickets I bought at the Gatineau Olympiques playoff game this past week. If you enjoy hockey, a playoff game at the Robert Geurtin arena should be on your list of places to visit. It's wild!

In Conclusion

An interesting article in the news this week involved "surprise" fees that credit card companies charge if you use your credit card to either deposit money at www.playolg.ca or purchase lottery tickets at the same site. The credit card company treats such purchases as cash advances which entails a fee in the $3-$5 range plus interest effective from the date of the transaction at the typical usury rates. Transaction fees may also be applied for debit card transactions. The OLG advises customers to check with their bank to be sure.

Also noteworthy is the number of shindigs being staged lately when the OLG makes good on their contracted payments to municipalities who house slot palaces. The OLG's head honcho even issues press releases speaking to the wonderful partnership and all the good deeds that are possible thanks to the OLG. If you look behind the curtain you'll find that throwing an annual party in honour of the OLG is mandated in every host contract. What a heartwarming spontaneous outflowing of emotion!

Finally, it is noteworthy that Mayor Tory is open to expanded gaming at Woodbine. You will recall that Toronto City Council previously voted it down but only after it was presented as a fall back position by the OLG who had tried to straight arm city council into approving a downtown casino. After that gambit failed, the OLG tried to salvage something but the council voted 24-20 against the previously unavailable second option.

In his comments Mayor Tory speaks of job creation but we already know that such statements have already been discredited. Any new jobs at Woodbine would have to be offset against people presently employed who would lose their jobs when ownership of the present slot palace is passed from the OLG to the selected contractor and jobs in surrounding municipalities would be cannibalized in order to expand the Woodbine facility. Still, it's up to council to make the best decision despite the chicanery of the OLG.

Best to all.


Doug