Texas Lottery bans lottery courier services

Comment #29

LottoIntuitive — Wed, 05 Mar 2025 14:25:46 GMT

The couriers don't design lottery games just like lottery retail stores don't design games. The problem is the design of the game itself.

Buying jackpots can be done with a well organized group through any lottery retail store no matter how many machines they have if they have enough people in multiple locations. It may end up not being worth the efforts but it can be done. Couriers are not needed to buy jackpots.

No matter this law is crazy for making it illegal for people to play the s... [ More ]

Comment #28

LottoIntuitive — Wed, 05 Mar 2025 14:16:49 GMT

Instead of them worrying about how many machines people have they may need to focus on changing the games that increase their jackpots over time.

Maybe they should stop increasing the prize amount when it is possible to buy all combinations.

Having a place to go to where they have a lot of terminals printing out tickets is a great thing when you hate standing in line at some store with one or two terminals. Couriers are even better for convenience.

More people play the smaller nonjac... [ More ]

Comment #27

sam9009 — Wed, 05 Mar 2025 01:58:27 GMT

Agreed. Just remove the jackpot games and leave the smaller games. Very simple solution.

Comment #26

LottoIntuitive — Tue, 04 Mar 2025 18:26:21 GMT

We may need to boycott the TX lottery until they change the law so that it only applies to games with jackpots that increase over time.

Making it illegal for people to play non-jackpot games like the Pick 3/4 games through couriers is the wrong move because it has nothing to do with the problem that the law is trying to prevent which is buying jackpots.

Players want to use couriers to buy Pick 3/4 tickets because it's super convenient.

If we are able or feel like going to a store... [ More ]

Comment #25

LottoIntuitive — Mon, 03 Mar 2025 11:53:09 GMT

My only concern is the Pick 3 game because it has the best odds for me. It seems that the Pick 3 game is involved in this law Texas put in place so they can have a monopoly on the lottery and/or they don't know any better. It seems they don't want other people like couriers to make money because they see them as competition.

To be clear I agree that it's a bad thing to allow players to buy jackpots in games that have jackpots. However, the pick 3 game does not have a jackpot. The amount... [ More ]

Comment #24

sam9009 — Mon, 03 Mar 2025 03:10:21 GMT

This ban makes no sense.

Comment #23

LottoIntuitive — Mon, 03 Mar 2025 02:53:44 GMT

The right call would have been to educate the legislature and work with them to eliminate the specific problems with targeted rules.

Yeap, that part.

The law should not apply to small games like the Pick 3/4 games.

Pick 3/4 players should be able to buy tickets online wherever they want to, even if it's in a different country. If we want to take that risk it is our risk to take. Why take our freedom to play away because games where you can buy jackpots which had nothing to do with... [ More ]

Comment #22

PrisonerSix — Sat, 01 Mar 2025 03:35:55 GMT

This story is interesting to say the least. One thing that makes no sense is first the Texas Lottery says they can't ban courier services and now they are trying to ban them? The issue of these huge purchasing groups has been brought to them in the past but they claimed they couldn't do anything about it and now they are trying to do something?

It is definitely not illegal to buy up all 25million combinations, but the mechanics of actually doing it are mind boggling. They only reason these g... [ More ]

Comment #21

welington — Fri, 28 Feb 2025 02:51:20 GMT

When you buy with a courier and lose no investigation.If lottery so fair it shouldn't matter how much tickets u buy. Either lose big or win . Lottery wants the lion share of profits

Comment #20

EnReval — Thu, 27 Feb 2025 21:12:18 GMT

I tried to find that Spicewood location when I lived in Round Rock

30 something terminals is crazy

it has to be for big spenders

Comment #19

Justing618 — Thu, 27 Feb 2025 21:10:19 GMT

This is still mind boggling to me. Was the ticket purchased from a random computer draw. Or play slip. And I think. The simplest solution to this problem would be to limit the machines per retailer. Two mabye three terminals max.

Comment #18

jjtheprince14 — Thu, 27 Feb 2025 09:51:09 GMT

Good, that will shut down some cheats.

Comment #17

rcbbuckeye — Thu, 27 Feb 2025 01:33:19 GMT

Heard of Draft Kings but didnt realize til now they were involved.

Grief and Mindell knew what was going on, they wanted to sell tickets. Just hoping Tx legislature doesnt shut it down.

Comment #16

garyo1954 — Thu, 27 Feb 2025 00:04:19 GMT

I guess I'm an average player. I don't pay attention to where tickets are sold. All I care about is, Did someone win?

But you raise another good question.

We know that Draft Kings is connected to Jackpocket. Could it be Draft Kings funneling money into Jackpocket (money laundering)?

Do we know Jackpocket isn't tracking the combinations bought and offering some insider info to certain parties of combinations not purchased (crazy idea but it might increase the odds of hitting large if... [ More ]

Comment #15

rcbbuckeye — Wed, 26 Feb 2025 23:12:36 GMT

I was aware of Winners Corner in Austin for a while because I would see that they had sold winning tickets for other games such as Cash 5 and All or Nothing. Of course, having 30 some terminals was a revelation. It was a natural conclusion that Jackpocket was behind the sales of some winning tickets, even normal tickets not in the thousands.

When the big Lotto win at Winners Corner just happened it wasn't a surprise Jackpot was involved.

Comment #14

garyo1954 — Wed, 26 Feb 2025 22:30:51 GMT

I don't watch sales sheets or use Google view. I suspect a majority of players across the state are in that group. Probably not many players across the state that are familiar with Spicewood facility.

It follows if the majority didn't know about the facility they wouldn't have reason to be suspicious of the number of terminals.

It's common knowledge that people living in one city are not in the know of thing taken for granted in other cities or areas of the state.

It wasn't until... [ More ]

Comment #13

LottoMetro — Wed, 26 Feb 2025 21:00:12 GMT

The Spicewood facility has been known for years to anyone who looked at sales sheets and Google Street view. Seems odds that nobody thought having that many terminals was suspicious until now.

Comment #12

Artist77 — Wed, 26 Feb 2025 10:41:34 GMT

I agree. Just the facts. TDS.

Comment #11

garyo1954 — Wed, 26 Feb 2025 02:59:18 GMT

Has nothing to do with politics.

What started the uproar is an investment firm made a deal/contracted/whatever you want call it to use it equipment provided to a lottery site that was wooed by then director Gary Grief to print and purchase 25 million tickets and win one of the largest jackpots in state history.

And nobody can get answers to why this site has at least 30 machines with pallets of ticket and printer paper. And a second location operating in Waco.

And kids involved in

Comment #10

lakerben — Wed, 26 Feb 2025 00:31:26 GMT

It's a republican state and they are following the lead of Elon and dt. They want complete control over everything . Whether it's right or wrong they have control. I lived there in the 90's and it wasn't as bad.

Comment #9

garyo1954 — Wed, 26 Feb 2025 00:19:20 GMT

I admit you raised a good, interesting thought.

Yes, Texas is hugely rural. I moved from Dallas in 2009 and where I live now would be three Dallas city blocks population wise.

State medicaide provides transportation for medical appointments. They will pick you up and deliver you to your door. And they have been known to stop for prescriptions, or other necessaries as well. Had a neighbor who used them for years.

There is also the rural transit system which I've used to see a speciali... [ More ]

Comment #8

Todd — Tue, 25 Feb 2025 22:52:30 GMT

Some people can't get out of the house. Also, Texas is a huge state with very large rural areas. I imagine many people live far away from town and don't have easy access to the lottery.

The Lt. Governor's statement was ill-informed and illustrates that he does not have a grasp on the situation. The Lottery should have educated the government officials privately about the issue not in a hearing where the participants are trying to score political points.

As I mentioned, there is a really... [ More ]

Comment #7

Participant — Tue, 25 Feb 2025 22:41:52 GMT

The courier services appears to be defeating the equality guarantees of the lottery to the players at-large and the need to preempt and defeat it by the lottery, is at this time, higher than the benefits of on-line services to the players.

Comment #6

JustMaybe — Tue, 25 Feb 2025 22:04:48 GMT

The answer was a resounding YES

Comment #5

garyo1954 — Tue, 25 Feb 2025 21:56:11 GMT

That's an interesting point I never considered.

But in the cities you have public transportation if a lottery ticket is that important to you.

Likewise there are several type service here in the sticks that provide transportation for medical appointments or shopping. They pick you up at your door and deliver you back.

The only drawback is you have to wait on others. They drop you off, drop others off wherever they are going and come back to collect you.

Of course if you're a tot... [ More ]

Comment #4

EnReval — Tue, 25 Feb 2025 21:12:08 GMT

They should start an online service where tkts can only be purchased thru their website like GA and some other states

Comment #3

Participant — Tue, 25 Feb 2025 18:07:03 GMT

I think 18 USC Section 1956 has the answer.

Comment #2

JustMaybe — Tue, 25 Feb 2025 17:44:24 GMT

I will ask the question again ... Is buying $25 million of $1 tickets a sign of money laundering? Yes or no?

Well, I don't know about that, but I travel internationally a lot, Europe, Africa and Middle East. One thing I know for certain, traveling with undeclared $10K in cash is considered money laundering. If you are a family of four and each family member has $3K, that is considered money laundering because in total you have $12K - the custom agents don't take the argument that everyone h... [ More ]

Comment #1

Todd — Tue, 25 Feb 2025 16:34:07 GMT

My opinion is that this is a terrible decision and capitulation. Rather than just eliminating buying groups by imposing a limit on the number of tickets that can be purchased by a group or individual, the Texas Lottery has disenfranchised all the people who are unable to go to a store.

The right call would have been to educate the legislature and work with them to eliminate the specific problems with targeted rules.

Texas Lottery bans lottery courier services

Lottery Post — Tue, 25 Feb 2025 15:00:18 GMT

Pressure coming from all sides leads to immediate policy change

By Kate Northrop

The Texas Lottery announced Monday that, effective immediately, lottery courier services are no longer allowed to operate in the state of Texas.

After facing immense pressure from state legislation to rethink its relationship with courier services, the Texas Lottery has enacted new policies that effectively ban lottery courier services in the state.

...in order to more fully promote and ensure integr... [ More ]