Take a chance

Pickin Picking a winner

SOME says it’s simply a game of chance, and you are in the hands of the bingo gods. But others believe there is some method in the madness, and certain tricks of the trade can improve your chances of a win. So, can you really improve your chances with the bingo balls? Here’s a few thought-starters… Even distribution

That theory ‘everything evens out in the end’ may be true in bingo. Stock market inv investor and mathematical analyst Joseph E. Granville put forward a theory that in the long run, there would be an equal number of even, odd, high and low numbers called, so the best way to win at bingo was to ensure your draw had an even distribution of odds and evens, high and low numbers, and numbers ending in each of the single digits 0-9. While this may sound good in theory, and certainly many players who choose their cards are mindful of it, it is worth noting that Granville was a terrible stock market investor,

and lost a small fortune. Stuck in the middle If you’re still keen on numbers, perhaps British statistician L.H.C Tippett’s theory is more your speed. Tippett’s theory about randomness (which it should be noted is not backed up by any evidence) suggests the more numbers called in bingo, the more likely it is that those numbers will gravitate towards the median number. So, if you have a bunch of middle numbers, say from 30 to 50, you’re in luck. Maybe. The fact is, bingo is a gameme of chance, so it is entirely y random. There may not be any ways to increase your chanceshances of winning – but there iss one sure fire way to decrease your chances of winning – and that’s not to be in it. The first step toward winning is taking part, so hang onto your bingo cards in tomorrow’s paper and catch the daily numbers in the paper starting Saturday to have a chance at winning some great prizes in our Bill Busters Bingo competition.