Includes video report
CLEVELAND, Ohio — An analysis of an Ohio Lottery database reveals that seven Ohio residents have won the state lottery more than 100 times in the last three years.
A majority of those winners are in Northeast Ohio. Broadcast network News 5 attempted to contact the winners but they either did not want to be interviewed or could not be reached.
"Lucky," said Sandy Hibsman, a Middleburg Heights resident reacting to the frequency of winners. "Very, very lucky."
Hibsman added that she plays the lottery at least three times a week but loses frequently.
State data shows that a Polk, Ohio man won the lottery 150 times since the beginning of 2014. His winnings earned him a total of $154,782. He won most frequently playing Keno Booster at an Ashland bar.
A Middleburg Heights man won $583,660 since the beginning of 2014 by winning the Ohio lottery 142 times, most frequently playing Pick Four. A majority of his winning tickets were purchased at the Sunoco gas station at 7606 Pearl Road in Cleveland.
The other frequent winners live in Mentor, Garfield Heights, Niles, Centerville and Goshen, Ohio. All of them won more than $100,000 in the lottery.
"If you're asking me about the odds of that occurring, it would probably be considered an outlier," said Jack O'Donnell, deputy director of the office of security for the Ohio Lottery.
But O'Donnell said the 100-plus lotto winners are not necessarily suspicious.
"There are several different ways that that can occur," he added.
"I don't think it's surprising," said Dr. Bill Notz, a statistician at Ohio State University. "In fact, to some extent, I would say you're almost guaranteed of having seven winners that have won at least one hundred times."
Notz said the frequency of winning often has to do with the games that a player is playing and the odds of winning that game.
The lottery games that the most frequent winners most often profited from were Keno Booster and Pick 4. Both games have relatively high odds of winning, depending on how one plays those games.
"As long as you're throwing in one of the Keno tickets a week, you could very easily end up as one of these seven people," added Notz.
Regardless, O'Donnell said state lottery investigators do look into individual players and retailers if they suspect suspicious activity. They also follow-up on complaints received.
"Many times we're told by people when we go and interview them that they'll show us the tickets they've purchased and how much they play the game, and we try to determine if there's something reasonable about they're doing," said O'Donnell.
VIDEO: Watch the report
I had to laugh when I read this because of the lack of replies. The lottery officials don't seem to be too concerned
so I suspect they must be buying tons of tickets.
RL
How ironic; drove to Cincinnati today to visit the casino and buy PB, MM, Classic OH! lottery and Lucky 4 Life tickets. I thought Ohio was an anonymous state? Casino was a bust. Yesterday $10 free play casino S. Indiana=$300 cash out! Of course played PB and MM in Indiana as well.
As for the lucky souls who keep winning, more power to you!
Could It Be: The More One Plays: The More One Wins?
I just want to win once! Is that so much to ask?
OHIO LOTTERY follow up. Don't think so!!!
a Deli Mart just south of Snow Rd/ on Pearl Rd in NE Ohio has an instant machine
which I purchased EVENLY over all 4 slots for the same $20 lottery rip off (sorry, scratch off)
for a total of $320 at once, spread even among those 4 slots of $20 tickets. NOT ONE, repeat NOT ONE
of those 4 $20 tickets in each slot produced NOT ONE SINGLE WINNER
ALSO SUSPICIOUS WAS THE NUMBERS OF THE $20 tickets were NOT SEQUENTIAL !!!! (ie. 12,13,14,15)
the numbered tickets were not in order like rolls of tickets are produced!!!
NEVER A WORD from the Ohio Lottery, this was about 4 years ago. Check up my A&# !
Wow! You see that Pick4 player?
When they show the list of wins he's playing the numbers straight!
Did these 7 people when a hundred times each or all together?
Each, they are good whatever they are doing.
Luck trumps good any day.
No question they are spending like drunken sailors. Over 3 years if you are winning you will give at least half of it back if not all, if you are not discipline.
Exactly! I'd only be surprised if they won 100 times and only bought 100 tickets. As you said, they likely spent half or more of what they won on losing tickets.
They fail to mention how many people lose. In pick 4, you have to stick with the same number, for a long time. That printout showed a bunch of straight hits, but was that one player? I think it was.
"Many times we're told by people when we go and interview them that they'll show us the tickets they've purchased and how much they play the game, and we try to determine if there's something reasonable about they're doing," said O'Donnell.
Is it ever reasonable to buy tons of tickets trying to win a lottery prize even if you win the top prize? Or if you've discovered something that gives you a winning advantage to show it to the lottery?
Claiming "anonymously" probably means the state lottery won't publish the names of the winners without their consent, but there is still that pesky "Freedom of Information Act".
As for the extraordinary number of a few people cashing 100s of tickets valued over $600, bet they are just cashing the tickets for the people that do want to remain anonymous. Federal and state taxes are paid and probably why the lottery doesn't care how who bought the tickets.