One day I asked them why they place $1 and they told me that they do it because losing $1 doesn't harm their lives and if they win they can use the money to buy things they need. It's a situation where they don't lose anything. Now in OP's case, if he wins, it's an amount that he won't be able to use in the real world.
That's the point. We all know that by playing multiple games with high odds, the chances of winning are from few to minimal. So they put a lower limit on this percentage, but at least it can give them some of the expenses. For me, it's better than playing lotteries and maybe you can even win something if there is a possibility of "cash out"...