How to Win a Basket Raffle Without Cheating

Ever fork out ten bucks for a raffle and have some old lady beat you after only investing a quarter? I have and it was ridiculously annoying. Imagine seeing a bucket filled almost entirely with your name deliver the only ticket not yours. Unlikely, right? After all, percentages and randomness determine a raffle, right? WRONG! Certain factors skew the randomness, making the conventional raffle more of a strategy game than a game of chance. Here are some tricks on how to win that basket raffle and why they should work for you.

Sometimes when the tickets are being drawn, a person merely spins the tickets around and picks one off the top. This inefficient mixing method doesn’t actually mix the tickets at all. It just rotates the tickets in the bucket a few times, which makes whichever one on top more likely to be drawn. So if you’re only going to buy a ticket or two, you might want to wait towards the end of the selling period. You'll be that much more likely to win the raffle if this is the case.

Just like in the above method, inefficient mixing methods can very easily skew randomness. So what if the person drawing the tickets doesn’t thoroughly mix and simply moves clumps around? In that case, your huge stack of tickets might all be on the very bottom. In order to avoid this, try buying periodically throughout the buying window. That way, you know you’ll always have a chance in every raffle regardless of how the tickets are mixed.

Sometimes, despite the basket of crap being full of things you’ll never use, it might actually contain something valuable to someone else. For instance, everyone for some reason attempts to win the basket raffle with chocolates and other sweets. Looking at the monetary value of the contents, it’s usually barely worth putting a single ticket into these baskets. Some crappy hair product basket, on the other hand, might have some reasonably expensive formulas. Hair product is expensive! Also if you ever see a ticket basket for the most part empty, try to win that one, regardless of whether you want it or not. At least you’ll win one of the raffles.

Obviously, a bucket filled to the brim with tickets is going to provide little opportunity for success. If the tickets sold strongly outweigh the cost of the basket, then the raffle was a success for those hosting it, making it a lost cause for you. It’s just like playing the lottery. You’re more likely to spend the total jackpot before you win it, so the practicality in playing is greatly diminished. On the other hand, the cause might make buying a ticket worth it, or maybe just the thrill of gambling. If you want to be a good person or have a good time with it, just try dispersing.

Your ticket will take up more volume and stand out among the crowd if you crumple it a bit before putting it in the basket. The person pulling the raffle might glide their hand against all of the smooth surfaces and catch yours. I’ve tested this one and I’ve got to say, I felt a little bit ashamed for it. It almost always works. Don’t make it too obvious you’re doing it though. It’ll look suspicious and someone might realize it. Just be inconspicuous and don’t crumple it too much.

I've been around for many raffles in which someone just isn't there to claim the prize. Don't expect the drawing to occur before you go. In reality, those tickets aren't being drawn until the very last minute in most cases. If you're going to put out the money, at least give yourself a chance to win the raffle.