The Still family did almost everything right to win this $61 million Mega Millions share of the jackpot prize. They played regularly and selected a cash lump sum.

But they weren't able to stay anonymous - a big mistake when you win a major lottery prize.

There are other ways you can get caught when you play, and here's 8 of them to ponder over and be amazed:

MISTAKE #1 - Not Buying Tickets: This seems obvious, but you'd be surprised from this post how many players have let a big prize slip away forgotten... $1 million lost in one case. 

MISTAKE #2 - Choosing the Biggest Jackpots: When you select by the jackpot amount alone, you could run into other problems as well. Discover them here.

MISTAKE #3 - Buying After Deadline: This Montreal player lost $27 million by playing only 7 seconds after the cutoff time! 

MISTAKE #4 - Using Quick Picks: See how a Louisiana player got duplicate quick picks - it does happen. Stay away from these useless methods of ticket selection.

MISTAKE #5 - Expecting to Win the Jackpot: There is a way to get better wins than going for the big money.

MISTAKE #6 - Not Joining a Pool: A syndicate could be the easiest way to get wins. Find out more here.

MISTAKE #7 - Buying Tickets at Wrong Times: Find the secret to getting the winning patterns in this post.

MISTAKE #8 - Losing the Ticket: You've won - now where did you put that ticket? And could you claim the jackpot without it? 

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