I won $1,000 a week for life on the lotto, but when faced with a tough decision I took home $930,000

A LUCKY lottery player will now see $1,000 a week for life after winning big on a scratch-off game in Florida.

Frank O’Dell, who lives in Hernando, Florida, took home the top prize from the $1,000 A Week For Life game after buying a ticket from a Circle K.

"I've never been very lucky," Frank told the Florida Lottery. "But I think it's safe to say that my luck has finally changed and now I'm set for life.”

After finding out he was the prize winner, he opted to take home the lump sum amount of $930,000 instead of the recurring payments.

If Frank had instead decided to take the annual lottery installments, he would have seen more money over time.

However, the choice of a lump sum or recurring payments is one of the toughest decisions lottery winners make.

You can either gain access to a high amount of cash straight away or secure a steady money stream throughout the years and end up with your full prize amount.

The $1,000 A Week For Life scratch-off game offers players the chance to win more than $54.5million in prizes.

Each ticket to play costs just $2, with eight top prizes available.

The odds of winning A Week For Life are one in 4.43.

Keep in mind that there are inherent risks involved in playing the lottery, and you should only buy a ticket if you can afford to do so.

INCREASE YOUR ODDS OF WINNING

Winning the lottery mostly incorporates luck of the draw, but there are some strategies players have recommended in the past.

For one, you can statistically up your chances of winning by joining a lottery pool.

These allow you and a group of people to purchase several tickets with the assumption you’ll split the prize.

A math professor in Florida also suggests employing a truly random number selection to boost your odds.

Richard Lustig, who won over $1million playing seven Florida jackpots, suggests using the same numbers over and over again as this could improve your chances.

He also advised those buying lottery tickets to skip any special birthday or anniversary numbers because they are rarely significant in a game.

Keep in mind, there’s no surefire way to win the lottery and risks are prevalent in any kind of gambling.

Only play if you can afford to do so.

HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF IF YOU WIN

Finance experts warn lottery winners to take several precautions after a big win.

With so many eyes on you, you’ll need to protect yourself and your newfound fortune from outside influences.

The U.S. Sun reported the advice from a "lottery lawyer" who seeks to help others protect their earnings.

Kurt Panouses told local Milwaukee-based ABC affiliate WISN he has advised over 30 winners about the key steps they should take.

 "You don't go back home to your little hometown and knock down your house and build a big mansion," Panouses said.

Panouses said groups, like the New York jackpot winners, are better off with their privacy than other winners.

"Why not get the court order to say: 'Hey, in addition, we would like this to have some privacy and get a judge to give you a court order,'" he said.

He also urged winners not to put money into small, local banks.

"This is not the time to go to your local credit union that you've used all your life and open up an account with them."

Another lottery player won $2million, but a small decision led him to only get $1.7million in his pockets.

Meanwhile, a businessman gave some chilling advice to other lottery winners after his own jackpot win led to his own bankruptcy.