Improve your odds of winning the lotto? Not!
03/05/13 08:27
I overheard a guy say, “I’m spending $20 on the next Powerball drawing to get ten plays (at $2 a play) so my chances of winning (the jackpot) will be 10 times better!” Sorry to break it to you buddy, but your chances are substantially the same, not 10 times better. Let’s look at the odds and the effect of buying multiple plays for an individual drawing.
If you purchase one play ($2) for Powerball, the odds of winning the jackpot (matching the first 5 numbers plus the Powerball number) are:
1 in 175,223,510
So what are your odds if you buy five plays, costing $10?
1 in 175,223,505
Ten plays costing $20 gives you odds of:
1 in 175,223,500
If you by 100 plays, costing $200, your odds of winning the jackpot do not substantially move. They are:
1 in 175,223,410
This is an easy demonstration that throwing more money and additional plays at a lotto game do very little good.
I suggest you get in the game, buy a single play for each lotto game your jurisdiction offers, and let lady luck do her thing. Throwing more money at the jackpot does you no good.
- - - - -
Tonight’s Mega Millions jackpot is a bit puny. Wednesday’s Powerball jackpot is better.
MEGA MILLIONS
03/05/2013
$26,000,000 est
Cash Option: $19,300,000
POWERBALL
03/06/2013
$123,000,000 est
Cash Option: $78,000,000
If you purchase one play ($2) for Powerball, the odds of winning the jackpot (matching the first 5 numbers plus the Powerball number) are:
1 in 175,223,510
So what are your odds if you buy five plays, costing $10?
1 in 175,223,505
Ten plays costing $20 gives you odds of:
1 in 175,223,500
If you by 100 plays, costing $200, your odds of winning the jackpot do not substantially move. They are:
1 in 175,223,410
This is an easy demonstration that throwing more money and additional plays at a lotto game do very little good.
I suggest you get in the game, buy a single play for each lotto game your jurisdiction offers, and let lady luck do her thing. Throwing more money at the jackpot does you no good.
- - - - -
Tonight’s Mega Millions jackpot is a bit puny. Wednesday’s Powerball jackpot is better.
MEGA MILLIONS
03/05/2013
$26,000,000 est
Cash Option: $19,300,000
POWERBALL
03/06/2013
$123,000,000 est
Cash Option: $78,000,000