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Double Rollover Jackpot

Tuesday February 24th 2009

A double rollover jackpot is a lottery jackpot that has not been won for two draws in succession, and has therefore been rolled over (which means added to the jackpot fund for the next draw) twice. This means that the jackpot for the third draw following a double rollover will usually be around three times as big as you might expect in a normal lottery draw following a jackpot win.

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In most lotteries, if nobody gets the lottery results then need to win a double rollover jackpot then the jackpot fund is rolled over again, but different lotteries have different rules about the maximum number of rollovers that are allowed.

The UK Lotto, for example, allows a maximum of three rollovers, and if nobody wins the jackpot in the fourth draw the money is shared between winners at the next highest prize level. This is referred to as a ‘rolldown’ of the lottery jackpot as opposed to a ‘rollover’.

A double rollover jackpot invariably leads to an increase in the sale of lottery tickets. The bigger a lottery jackpot, the more enthusiastic people are about trying to win it, so double rollovers inspire a great deal of enthusiasm, with many players choosing to increase the number of tickets they buy in an effort to increase their chances of winning.

As you would expect, this also means longer queues for double rollover tickets in traditional retail outlets, so the shrewdest players tend to buy lottery tickets for double rollover games online, which is infinitely more convenient.

Some lottery players vary their usual strategy when playing for a double rollover jackpot. They might have a specific set of numbers that they use only when there is a double rollover up for grabs, or they might be careful to buy a specific number of tickets to tie in with what they think of as their personal lucky number (for example, buying seven double rollover tickets if their lucky number is seven).

Whatever strategy a player adopts, there is no doubt that a double rollover jackpot gives us all the opportunity to have a lot more lottery fun!

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