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Expert: New Jersey's Twice a Day Lottery a Bad Bet13 December 2001NEW JERSEY – Dec. 13, 2001 –As reported by the Playing the lottery became twice as costly for Friday Grayson and thousands like him when New Jersey last month began offering two drawings a day. "Lottery officials say the midday Pick 3 and Pick 4 drawings - which were added to the regular evening ones - provide more variety, increase the number of winners, and generate additional revenue for the state. "Critics of the expansion contend that it preys on those whose attachment to certain numbers compels them to bet at every opportunity. "…In the first full week of the extra drawings, Pick 3 and Pick 4 games brought in a combined $14.4 million, up 27 percent from the previous three-month weekly average. The games have raised $14 billion since they began in 1977. Numbers are drawn every day at 12:57 p.m. and 7:56 p.m. "…Others contend that the extra games seek to extract even more money from those who can least afford it. "…[Richard McGowan, associate professor of economics at Boston College] has written two books on lotteries, and said New Jersey is banking on the fears of players who think: `What happens if I don't play my number and it comes up?' "`The Jersey Lottery Commission is going after the poorest players,' he said. `People play to their dreams, and for somebody in the middle class, $500 wouldn't change their lives, but it might make a difference to a poor person in Camden.' "New Jersey already had the eighth-highest-grossing lottery in the country. "…In 2000, New Jersey lottery sales were $1.83 billion, nearly $130 million more than Pennsylvania lottery sales, even though Pennsylvania's population is 12.3 million and New Jersey's is 8.4 million…" |