EZ2 (2D Lotto): how to play, Rambolito, prizes, draw times and the real odds

2D Lotto, the game most bettors still call EZ2, is the smallest of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) digit games: two numbers, three draws a day, fixed prizes. You must be at least 18 years old to buy a ticket or claim a prize (Summit Express's PCSO lotto guide).

How to play

From GMA News' 2D results page:

1. On the 2D playslip, pick two numbers, each from 1 to 31, or mark Lucky Pick (LP) and let the terminal choose.
2. Mark the amount for each combination. The play amount "varies from 10.00 to 500.00 inclusive of 20% Documentary Stamp Tax (DST)." The minimum is ₱10 per two-number combination.
3. Optionally mark Rambolito (the "system" bet, explained below).
4. For advance draws, mark how many consecutive draws you want: the same numbers and play type for up to six draws, ₱10 per play per draw.

A standard play wins only if both numbers match the draw in exact order (Summit Express). Picking 07-21 does not win if 21-07 is drawn, unless you played Rambolito.

Draw times

Draw	Time
First	2:00 PM
Second	5:00 PM
Third	9:00 PM

Manila Bulletin reported in December 2024 that PCSO draws air on IBC 13 and D8TV and are livestreamed on PCSO's Facebook and YouTube pages. GMA News' daily results pages (for example 8 November 2026) list the three 2D draws with a ₱4,000 prize each.

Prizes per ₱10

Bet type	When it wins	Prize per ₱10 played
Standard (straight)	Both numbers in exact order	₱4,000
Rambolito	Both numbers in any order	₱2,000

The ₱4,000 figure is from GMA News' results pages; the ₱2,000 Rambolito prize is from Summit Express's PCSO guide and a 2024 Philstar report.

Prizes are fixed per ₱10, so a bigger play pays proportionally. A ₱500 straight play that hits would be 50 × ₱4,000 = ₱200,000 before tax (our arithmetic), which is above the ₱10,000 tax line and must be claimed at a PCSO branch or the Main Office.

The odds (our arithmetic)

Each of the two drawn numbers is one of 31, and the same number can come out twice: published results include 15-15 (28 October 2026, 9PM) and 26-26 (14 September 2026, 2PM). So the number of possible results is:

31 × 31 = 961

Bet	Winning results out of 961	Chance per draw	Prize per ₱10	Average paid back per ₱10
Straight	1	1 in 961	₱4,000	₱4,000 ÷ 961 ≈ ₱4.16
Rambolito (two different numbers)	2 (a-b and b-a)	1 in 480.5	₱2,000	₱4,000 ÷ 961 ≈ ₱4.16

Both bets return, on average, about ₱4.16 of every ₱10 played, or 41.6%. Rambolito doubles the chance and halves the prize; it does not change the long-run return. The sources above do not say how Rambolito is handled for a doubled pair such as 15-15, which has only one ordering.

What that looks like over time (our arithmetic): playing one ₱10 straight combination in 100 draws costs ₱1,000. The chance of at least one hit in those 100 draws is 1 − (960/961)^100, about 9.9%. In roughly nine of ten such runs you would win nothing at all.

No pattern, "hot number" or past result changes these odds. Each draw is independent, so 961 results stay equally likely every time. For the 6-number games, see PCSO lotto odds of winning.

How to claim a 2D prize

Prizes up to ₱10,000 can be claimed at any lotto outlet; above that, at a PCSO branch or the Main Office (Summit Express; Philstar 2024). Step by step: how to claim a PCSO lotto prize.

• Tax. Prizes above ₱10,000 are taxed at 20%; the Tax Code's Section 24(B)(1) exempts PCSO and lotto winnings of ₱10,000 or less (lotto tax).
• Age. You must be at least 18 to claim.

Real tickets come from a terminal

A 2D ticket is printed by a PCSO lotto terminal. On 6 November 2026, Philstar reported that PCSO and the NBI raided a Caloocan lotto outlet that allegedly issued unauthorized betting slips and took payment by GCash instead of putting bets through the official terminals. PCSO urged bettors to bet only through authorized terminal networks and to report outlets that accept payment through other apps or issue suspicious receipts. A "2D" bet taken by text, chat or e-wallet outside a terminal is not a PCSO ticket; numbers games run that way are illegal (penalties).

For the three-digit game drawn at the same times, see Swertres (3D Lotto). For the local STL games, see is STL legal?.

If betting has stopped being fun, free help is at 02-8248-9568.

All PCSO games, prices and odds on one page: PCSO lotto guide.