Split Decision

Not everyone has been good about sharing group lottery winnings.

TUSK LUCK Atlanta airport cabbies, all of Ghanaian descent, sued one another last year after 23 of them claimed $49 million in Big Game winnings. Seven other drivers claimed they, too, were part of a pool that used smallchange winnings to buy tickets. "There is a saying in Ghana," said one driver. "When two elephants fight, the grass is the victim."

HE GOT STIFFED A Georgia funeral director sued his lifelong friend when his pal refused to share a $6-million lottery payout, even though they had a written contract to buy Kentucky lottery tickets and split the winnings. Weyman Mathis said he wouldn't share the dough because his daughter purchased the ticket for his wife.

WINNER HAD NO SOLE Patrick Doles, a shoe salesman at a California department store, was convicted of misdemeanor grand theft in 1986 for keeping the $5,000 prize he was supposed to share with four of his co-workers. His work buddies became suspicious when he quit his job, disconnected his phone and fled to Europe.