When Champagne Dreams Become Nightmares — The Best Online Casino Articles - TheBestCasinoGuide.com

So many people play the various lotteries offered all over the world hoping for a life changing, winning ticket. At the present time, the largest individual winner was for 315 million dollars and most people would assume that the person who won that vast amount of money is now living in bliss. Sadly, there have been many unfortunate cases where winning the lottery was a life wrecking experience instead of a life changing experience for the better. The winner’s champagne dreams turned to nothing but vinegar.

Here are some examples of when lottery wins turn to disaster and even tragedy:

1. Jack Whitaker

On Christmas day in 2002, Jack Whitaker got the Christmas gift of the millennium. He was the sole winner of a 315 million dollar powerball jackpot. To make it even sweeter, Jack was already worth 15 million dollars from his construction business. If anyone would be able to cope with this kind of money, this guy should have been the one. Sadly, things didn’t quite work out that way.

The first mistake Jack made was taking a lump sum payoff of 113 million dollars after taxes and then going on TV to celebrate his win. Before he could blink, he was besieged with requests for money from family and strangers alike. Then came the drinking, the gambling, the bar fights and the strip clubs. This was followed by having $545,000 in cash and cashiers checks stolen from a brief case in his car. His car was parked in front of a strip club at the time.

Then his granddaughter’s boyfriend overdosed on drugs in 2003 while in Jack’s house. This occurred on the same day that Jack’s house was robbed. Jack loved his granddaughter dearly and was giving her $2,100 a week as an allowance while she was 17 years old. Then real tragedy struck and his granddaughter vanished in 2004, only to be found dead of a drug overdose several weeks later.

While all this was going on, Jack managed to donate 20 million dollars to charity, started several charities of his own and help several friends start a business. At the present time, some of those same friends are suing Jack and all his charities are closed. He wishes he had done things differently and said "If I had to do it all over, Id be more secluded about it. Id do the same things, but Id be a little more quiet."

Jack’s wife wishes he had never won the lottery and that she had torn the ticket up. "I wish all of this never would have happened," Jewel Whittaker said. "I wish I would have torn the ticket up." Certainly this is one massive example of good fortune gone bad and the tragedy of 2 deaths make it all the more sad.

2. Mack Metcalf thought his 34 million dollar lottery jackpot was a sure fire way out of poverty and bad jobs. Mack and his estranged second wife, Virginia Merida, shared the ticket in 2000. Mack bought an estate in Southern Kentucky and filled his garage with vintage cars. Virginia bought a Mercedes and a mansion on the Ohio River that she filled with stray cats. One would have hoped this was a happy ending but alas, it was not.

Metcalf became a severe alcoholic who was sued by his first wife for child support. Then he claimed a former girlfriend conned him out of $500,000 while he was drunk. Virginia had a boyfriend overdose in her house, she felt her brother was harassing her and that the people in her community were starting to think of her house as a drug den.

In 2003 Mark died of alcohol related complications at the age of 45. Earlier in 2003 he had spent a month in the hospital for cirrhosis and hepatitis. Then the day before Thanksgiving, Virginia was found dead in her bed of a possible drug overdose at age 51. Metcalf’s first wife, Marilyn Collin summed it all up as she said, "If he hadn’t won, he would have worked like regular people and maybe had 20 years left. But when you put that kind of money in the hands of somebody with problems, it just helps them kill themselves."

3. William Post

William Post won 16 million dollars from the Pennsylvania Lottery in 1988 and with it came dreams of financial security. Those dreams quickly turned into a nightmare that took a little more than a year to ruin his life. During that time an ex girlfriend sued him and won some of his share of the lottery in court, his own brother tried to hire a hitman to kill him so he could inherit his money and other relatives conned him in to financing businesses that ended up failing. At the end of his year in hell, William Post was a million dollars in debt and in jail for shooting at a bill collector. Today, he lives on $450 a month in social security and is barely surviving. Once again, family members and greed got the best of a kind hearted man.

4. Evelyn Adams

Evelyn Adams had luck that most people don’t even fantasize about. She didnt just win the lottery once; she won it twice. First she won in 1985 and then she won again in 1986 for a total of 5 million dollars. Evelyn was flooded by friends and family with requests for money and she didn’t know how to say no. Then she got bitten hard by the gambling bug in Atlantic City and the rest was a disaster. She lost the entire 5 million and today Evelyn Adams lives in a trailer in Atlantic City.

5. Billie Bob Harrell Jr.

It is always sad when things go sour for a nice guy. Billie Bob Harrell Jr. was a deeply religious man from Texas who wanted the best for his family. When he won his 31 million dollars in the Texas Lottery in 1997, he was working a low paying job at Home Depot and barely paying the bills. Then with this sudden windfall, he thought his life would change for the better. But instead of getting reputable financial advice and putting away money for the long term, he bought houses and a ranch for family members. He gave out money to his family that none of them returned and soon most of his winnings were gone. Then in 1999, he quietly went into his bedroom one night and killed himself with his shotgun. One of the last things he said was " "Winning the lottery is the worst thing that ever happened to me."

These are just five examples among dozens of tragic stories about lottery winners who had their lives fall apart after they won the lottery. Of course there are also many, many lottery winners who had positive outcomes from their big win. Not everyone ends up broke and / or dead. Some lottery winners do get sound advice and do the smart things with their money.

Here is a useful list of some of the things a lottery winner should do to make the experience a positive one:.

1. When you win the lottery, keep it to yourself. Don’t let the lottery organization con you into doing publicity for them and do not go on television as the happy, big winner. No one can force you to advertise your winnings. Demand and maintain your privacy.

2. Be fully aware of all the rules and restrictions of the lottery in question. Make a copy of both sides of your lottery ticket and keep the original in a safe place like a bank safety deposit box or a home safe. Make sure to fill out the ticket completely and sign it. Never give your ticket to another person to "hold" for you.

3. Do not make verbal deals with people that you will give them a share if you win. If you do agree to split the winnings, get it in writing and get it notarized.

4. When you collect your winnings, have a lawyer with you to represent you. After you receive your winnings, hire a reputable financial adviser and a reputable accountant. Do not hire friends or relatives as your financial adviser or your accountant. Get the best, most honest professionals you can find.

5. Pick a bank carefully. If you have won millions of dollars, you should pick a bank that is used to dealing with large amounts of private wealth and knows about protecting your privacy and security. Select a bank that has a private banking division that gives special care to large depositors. Remember that you are now a very desirable client for any bank and you are entitled to the very best.

6. Pick a reasonable amount of money for your "mad money" and have a good time. This should never be more than 5% of your winnings and you should be discreet about your shopping spree.

7. Don’t just up and quit a a good job. Stay in you job and take some time to normalize your life. If you work in a job you really hate, then this is the time to go back to school or get specialized training for a career you really love.

8. Make smart, safe investments with the majority of your winnings. Invest in a retirement plan, secure bonds and other low risk investments. Make sure to generate a good rate of interest every year to supplement your income. That way you can greatly enhance your income without spending the principal or any profits on your investments. If you cleared 15 million dollars after taxes and invested 14 million of it wisely, you could generate $700,000 dollars a year at 5% interest for the rest of your life and leave the 14 million dollars plus any profits to your descendants. And you had 1 Million dollars mad money besides from the 15 million you initially won.

9. If you decide to buy property or a house, get a proper mortgage at choice rates. Do not go paying for a house in one lump sum. If the housing market crashes, you can get clobbered. By having a mortgage you protect your principal while hopefully your home grows in value. Also never buy a house or property on impulse or without doing good research. Have all pre purchase inspections done and buy for value. Avoid making purchases that drain your finances and have little to no return or growth potential.

10. Avoid giving away money. Think carefully about who you want to help and what they meant to you before your good fortune. Limit your donations to legitimate charities, educational institutions and your house of worship. When it comes to family, only give gifts to your closest relatives and don’t go crazy. A good figure to keep in mind is 5% to 10% max to charity and church and 2% to 4% max to family. Make anyone you give a gift to signs a confidentiality agreement and make all charitable gifts as anonymous donations. Do not give gifts to strangers or throw money at people who are less fortunate than you. The donations you make to legitimate charities and church will help those in need. The bulk of your winnings are for you and your immediate family. Never forget that and don’t ever let anyone take advantage of your kindness.

11. Remember your winnings were a gift of great luck and good fortune. Respect, cherish and appreciate every penny of it. Be smart and quiet about your big win and live a long, happy life enjoying your blessings.

There we have it. The good, the bad and the ugly of the world of lottery jackpots. So many winners have come to tragic ends; mostly because they just didn’t know how to say no and because they never got honest, professional help to manage their money. If you are ever lucky enough to win a multi million dollar lottery jackpot, be sure to follow the steps we outlined above and let your winning story have a happy ending.