The Hong Kong lottery, officially known as Mark Six, is a popular jackpot-style lotto game that was first introduced in 1975. It is run by HKJC Lotteries Limited, a subsidiary of the Hong Kong Jockey Club.
The Mark Six Lotto offers seven prize levels, and the odds of winning are one in 13,983,816. To play, players pick a combination of six numbers from 1 to 49 and hope that all six will be drawn.
In addition to its thrice weekly draws, the Mark Six also offers special “Snowball” Draws throughout the year – which offer bigger jackpots than their thrice weekly counterparts. The money raised by these special Snowball Draws is then put into a Prize Fund to boost the jackpot for future draws.
To make sure that the Mark Six Lotto is fair, a number of measures are taken to ensure that each drawing is free from fraud and irregularities. These include weighing, measuring and x-raying the balls used in the lottery. In addition, the machine and the ball are locked in a secure location after every drawing.
Those who win a prize from the Mark Six Lotto have 60 days to claim it. They can choose to receive a cash lump sum or a cheque. The prizes are paid out at any off-course betting branch or racecourse betting counter in Hong Kong.
The lottery is a popular way to raise funds for local charities and community projects. The Hong Kong Jockey Club donates a large amount of its proceeds to charity and is one of the world’s largest donators. In fact, it is estimated that HK$ 1 billion is donated to community projects each year.