Patent ID: 8523669

Claim:
A method for providing personalized plays in a host lottery system in operative communication with a plurality of electronic scanners at corresponding retailer terminals, comprising the steps of: maintaining an electronic database of player accounts, game options and play criteria options securely accessible through a computer network, wherein said player accounts comprise player identifiable information, and wherein said game options and said play criteria options are defined according to the host lottery system; presenting said game options and play criteria options to an authorized player through said computer network; providing alternative prize structures in said play criteria options, wherein each one of said alternative prize structures comprises a plurality of price points, wherein said alternative prize structures are comprised of a plurality of optional prize structures selectable by a plurality of authorized players, wherein one of said authorized players selects one of said optional prize structures for a selected game and another of said authorized players selects another of said optional prize structures for said selected game, said alternative prize structures are comprised of sets of varying payouts for corresponding numbers of lottery matches; receiving play data from said authorized player through said computer network, wherein said play data comprises a selection of said presented game options and corresponding play criteria options for said authorized player; creating a personalized game document with unique data comprising said player identifiable information and said play data for said authorized player, wherein said unique data is formatted in a scanning-code recognizable to the electronic scanners at the retailer terminals; identifying a selection of at least one of said alternative prize structures in said unique data for said authorized player; and transmitting an electronic version of said personalized game document to said authorized player through said computer network.