Set For Life Life Ball
If you’ve ever looked at a Set For Life playslip and wondered what that little extra number tucked away in its own box is for, you’re not alone. The final ball is known as the “Life Ball,” and if you win it, you’ll hit the jackpot. In fact, it’s like the life of your lottery.
This guide is going to be all about the important part, which is the Life Ball, and what the Set for life life ball is, how it’s drawn, and how it affects your prize. And just to be clear from the start, this article covers the UK version of Set For Life, not the separate Australian game of the same name, which works quite differently.
What Is the Set For Life Life Ball?
An extra number drawn in Set For Life is called the Life Ball. When you play Set For Life, the Life Ball is distinct from the five numbers you choose. It is fairly typical for a player’s primary numbers and Life Ball to match on a single ticket because the Life Ball is picked from an entirely other set of balls.
How Does the Life Ball Work?
The Set for life life ball will be determined by drawing out a sixth ball from an extra ten after the first five numbers have been brought out. The two sets of findings will then be compared to your ticket.
How many main numbers you match determines which prize band you’re in, and whether you also matched the Life Ball decides how much bigger that prize gets, or, at the top end, whether you win the life-changing jackpot at all.
Set For Life draws are held twice a week on Monday and Thursday evening, with ticket sales typically closing at 7:30 pm on the day of the draw.
Do You Need to Match the Life Ball to Win?
Not necessarily. Set For Life has a tiered prize structure, and you can win a prize by matching as few as two main numbers, with no Life Ball required at all. Matching with the Life ball is quite essential if you are trying to reach the top. It would be quite an accomplishment to match five digits, but if you could also get the sixth right, that would be your huge prize!
So think of it this way: the main numbers get your foot in the door for a prize, while the Life Ball is what unlocks the biggest rewards on offer.
How Does the Life Ball Change the Prize?
This is where the Set for life life ball Life Ball really earns its keep. You snag a prize when you match all five numbers, but the real excitement kicks in when you also match that one extra Life ball number. That’s when the stakes really get high!
The clearest example is at the very top. If you manage to match all five main numbers along with the Life Ball, you’ll snag the top prize: a whopping £10,000 every month for 30 years! That adds up to an incredible £3.6 million by the time the full term is over. Miss the Life Ball but still match all five main numbers, and you drop down to the second-tier prize, £10,000 a month, but only for one year, totalling £120,000.
Further down the prize table, the pattern continues on a smaller scale. Matching four main numbers plus the Life Ball pays out more than matching four main numbers on their own, and so on down through the tiers. In short, the Life Ball acts as a multiplier of sorts, rewarding players who get lucky with both draws.
How Is the Life Ball Drawn?
The Life Ball draw employs the same style of random draw system as the main numbers, but with fewer balls (10) marked with numbers ranging from 1 to 10, rather than 47. It is drawn independently, shortly after the main draw, and broadcast live.
Because the process is random and the two draws are entirely separate, there’s no pattern or system that can predict which Life Ball number will come up. Every number from 1 to 10 has an equal one-in-ten chance on any given draw.
Can I Choose My Life Ball Number?
Yes. When you fill up a playslip, either at the store or on the website, there is a special place for the Life Ball, separate from your five main number choices. There are no rules for choosing numbers; you can use any techniques for it. You can do this for just the Life Ball or your entire line; the choice is entirely yours!
Some people like to have a Life Ball number that is the same as one of their main five, for no particular reason other than good luck, since the two pools are completely separate and there is nothing stopping you.
Set For Life Life Ball and Winning Numbers
When the results are shown, you first see the 5 numbers you picked, and then you see the Life Ball, which is separate from your numbers, sometimes colored in a circle. To see if you win, check if you selected the numbers that won, then check if the Life Ball number that you picked is the number that won. The combination of both results determines your prize tier.
The odds of winning any reward in Set For Life are 1 in 12.4 overall, and the odds of winning the jackpot, all five main numbers, and the Life Ball are 1 in 15,339,390. Since it kicked off in March 2019, Set For Life has had quite a few lucky participants walk away with the grand prize.
Set For Life Life Ball FAQs
1. How many Life Ball numbers are there?
There are 10 possible Life Ball numbers, ranging from 1 to 10.
2. Can I choose my Life Ball?
Yes, you can pick your own Life Ball number on your playslip, or use a Lucky Dip to have one generated randomly for you.
3. Is the Life Ball drawn separately?
Yes. A second set of balls is utilized; you must pick one number between one and ten, but this is also determined during the live drawing.
4. Do I need the Life Ball to win?
No, not for every prize. You can win by matching simply two primary numbers.
5. What happens if I match 5 numbers and the Life Ball?
You win the top prize: £10,000 every month for 30 years, which adds up to £3.6 million in total over the life of the prize.
Want To Check The UK Set For Life Lottery Older Results?
Check out all the Set For Life Draw History on this page.