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ODD-JOB labourer Lau Hai Boon, 55, scrapes together about $700 a month.
These days, even as rising living costs eat into his earnings, he would rather skip meals than give up buying 4-D, Toto and the Singapore Sweep.
He blows up to $200 - almost a third of his income - on these forms of gambling, on the chance that he may luck into major winnings.
'What if I strike the first prize?' he asked with a hopefulness typical of gamblers.
He is among a growing number of low-income earners who decide to wager a significant portion of their wages on a chance of striking it rich.
In a recent survey of 2,300 Singaporeans conducted by the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports, it was found that 60 per cent among those earning under $1,000 gambled, up from 50 per cent in 2005.
Among those earning $1,000 to under $2,000, 66 per cent gambled, also up from 2005's figure of 63 per cent.
The gambling participation rates among those in income brackets above $2,000 ranged from 56 per cent to 62 per cent - but these rates were lower across the income brackets than in 2005.
The better-off wager more money every month on average, but more of those from the lower-income groups put bigger portions of their salaries into gambling.
Among those earning less than $1,000, almost eight in 10 put up to $100 - a 10th of their income - into bets, the highest among all the income brackets surveyed.
Among those earning up to $2,999, however, only three in 10 gambled away that portion of their salaries.
The Straits Times spoke to 35 people earning under $2,000 a month, all of whom said they gambled away sums of between $4 and $1,000 every month.
The majority said they were seduced by the slim, but glimmering, possibility of striking it big.
The profile of cases seen at the Tanjong Pagar Family Service Centre's counselling division for problem gamblers confirms the pattern: It has handled about 680 cases since 2006, the majority being men aged between 20 and 45 and earning below $2,000.
National University of Singapore sociology professor Paulin Straughan describes the phenomenon as a shot at the classic rags-to-riches story.
She asked: 'What's the likelihood of someone from the lower classes who is middle-aged or older of ever making it to the very top of our class structure? Short of striking the lottery, there are very few other avenues for them to achieve wealth.'
The National Council on Problem Gambling is stepping up efforts to reach out to this group, with initiatives aimed at people like blue-collar workers, the self-employed and transport workers.
But Dr Arthur Lee, head of the Institute of Mental Health's addiction medicine department, cautioned against generalising gambling habits based on income levels.
'Both the poor and the rich gamble.The rich think they can take more risks, the poor think they have nothing to lose.'
hxinyi@sph.com.sg
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY STEPHANIE SONG AND JASON HAU
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