The "Mark Six," Hong Kong's national lottery, has been running for over 40 years, launched back in August 1975. The biggest prizewinner in the first draw won $166,729, after matching just five of the six numbers. Since then, Mark Six has created plenty of millionaires, and continues to hit the local headlines in the event of a big "rollover."

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Nowadays, people don't have to be in Hong Kong to get involved with the Mark Six. International companies now allow people from elsewhere to bet on lotteries across the world, including Hong Kong's local favourite.

Lottoland is a company that allows people to bet on global lotteries, including the Hong Kong Lottery, Brazillian Mega Sena and the well-known US Power Ball. Participants from around the world now have loads of lottery choices open to them.

How the Mark Six Works

The Hong Kong Mark Six builds up some huge jackpots. Part of the reason for this is that it's now drawn three times per week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays - which creates more chances of a rollover.

It's a pretty straightforward lottery - and the clue's in the name. Participants select six numbers from 1-49, and the top prize is won by whoever gets all six numbers correct. People who don't wish to choose their own numbers can have them picked at random using the "QuickPick" option.

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Although the jackpot pays out for six correct numbers, seven are actually drawn. There's a significant "second prize" win on offer for a correct guess of five numbers plus this extra "bonus" ball. (The "Lotto" game in the United Kingdom works in the same way).

Single tickets purchased via a global lottery website such as Lottoland cost $2.50 each, and there's a 1 in 13,983,186 chance of winning the jackpot. Thankfully there are many other prizes, with a correct guess of three numbers required to win the smallest prize, with prizes increasing with more correct choices.

Eye-Watering Prizes

The Hong Kong Mark Six lottery hit the headlines in early 2018 when the total jackpot went up to over 100 Million Hong Kong Dollars (over CA$16 million). When Hong Kong lottery rollovers reach these proportions, it becomes headline news and results in queues at local lottery outlets.

The Mark Six has something of a cult status in Hong Kong, with records for maximum total stakes frequently being broken. One ticket outlet at Stanley Street in central Hong Kong has issued 45 first prize tickets since 1994, and there are other shops that have been a part of over 30 jackpot wins each. When many millions were on offer in early 2018, one person injured his leg in the frenzy to get hold of a ticket from the lucky outlet!

Thankfully, with the help of online international lottery companies, there's no need to join queues or risk any physical injuries! People can now bet on the outcome of the Mark Six, and loads of other international games, and win the same prizes wherever they are, all from the comfort of their computers.