I live in a state where you can not legally play cards for money . So Instead of playing for money we all bring a $10 scratch off lottery ticket ... Not sure if it would hold up in court
Unlikely. I don't know which state you are in and what the law says, but most likely it refers to gambling "for value" as opposed to "for money". Lottery tickets have value, so you are stlil violating the law.
Any even if it referenced money specifically, the court -- despite what you see on TV shows -- isn't stupid and doesn't generally like being treated as such (hey, it's not money, see, they are lottery tickets! ... that argument is going to be thrown out for being, well, ummm, stupid).
It's still a cool idea, but I wouldn't pin my hopes on it being legal (if playing cards for money is illegal as you say)