Megamillions $170 Million & Powerball $350 Million

[QuarterMillionMan]

The May 14 Megamillions jackpot is estimated to be $170 million and the Powerball May 15 jackpot is estimated to be $350 million. Do you play? I only play when the amounts get up there and this qualifies as getting up there for me. I have $10 each.

[bjl584]

I already have the winning tickets for both drawings, so don't bother playing.

[disneysteve]

I always find it interesting that people are more attracted to play when the jackpot is bigger. The odds of winning don't change. In fact, the odds of there being multiple winning tickets increases as ticket sales increase. So when the jackpot is $50 million your odds of having the only winning ticket are probably better than when the jackpot is $200 million. Besides, the minimum guaranteed jackpot is $40 million. Isn't that enough?

All of that said, I will splurge and buy a ticket from time to time. I actually bought one on Saturday and won $7. Of course, I spent $10.

[bigdaddybus]

I buy tickets maybe once a year when the jackpot gets big, so if I think about it while I am out today I might grab a few.

Its fun to dream, oh the garage I would build!

Overall, I view the lottery alot like a $6 a pack cigarettes. To me they are both a tax on the poor as most I see buying IMO dont make enough income to be buying.

[disneysteve]

Overall, I view the lottery alot like a $6 a pack cigarettes. To me they are both a tax on the poor as most I see buying IMO dont make enough income to be buying.

Statistically, this is true. The demographic that buys the most lottery tickets (and the most cigarettes) is the poorest segment of society. It is really unfortunate since the tens of millions of dollars that they spend on lottery and smoking could go to so much better use.

[JoeP]

I sincerely believe lottery tickets and scratchers are the equivalent of idiot tax.

Having said that, I openly admit that when the jackpot gets into the 9 figure range, I sometimes pay my $5 idiot tax.

[phantom]

My husband commented the other day that since they raised the price of Powerball tickets to $2, he's noticed more big Powerball jackpots but fewer people getting excited about them. I tend to ignore the big lotteries entirely. So, I wouldn't have even known it was getting high if he hadn't said anything.

I decided a long time ago that buying lottery tickets would not significantly increase my changes of becoming a millionaire without having to work for it. So, I'm content to dream along with everyone else while saving my money.

[disneysteve]

I sincerely believe lottery tickets and scratchers are the equivalent of idiot tax.

I think it depends on the mindset of the person buying them. If you can comfortably afford the cost and do it for the entertainment value, I don't have a problem with that. As long as you understand that the odds of winning are 1:175,000,000, where's the harm?

The problem is the people who can't afford it, live on public assistance, can barely put food on the table, and buy tickets every single day because they see it as the only way they will ever get ahead.

[feh]

The May 14 Megamillions jackpot is estimated to be $170 million and the Powerball May 15 jackpot is estimated to be $350 million. Do you play? I only play when the amounts get up there and this qualifies as getting up there for me. I have $10 each.

I buy powerball when it gets over $150M. Just one ticket, however.

[QuarterMillionMan]

$100 win

The one on the left was a $100 win.

[Baby_nurse]

Can I admit that I have never, ever bought a lottery ticket?

That might explain why I have never won

[QuarterMillionMan]

Casino wins

Not lottery but these are some of my other casino wins.

[disneysteve]

Casinos are entirely different than lotteries. The odds are phenomenally different even for the worst of casino games. And for the best games properly played, the house edge is just a fraction of one percent. For example, full play video poker has a house edge of 0.46%. Blackjack has a house edge of about 0.45%. Compare that to Powerball where your odds of hitting the jackpot are 1 in 175,000,000.

Heck, a slot machine with a 6% house edge is far, far better than the lottery and that's considered a sucker's game in the casino world.

[mrpaseo]

My husband commented the other day that since they raised the price of Powerball tickets to $2

We just found out that they are now $2 each (Shows how much we play). We put $6 bucks in so far this year (This past week was the first time). At least the money goes to TN schools (Or so I have been told).

Every blue moon my wife and I have a conversation that goes something like this, "First: Power Ball is up to $XXX Million, Second: You can't win if you don't play, First: You wanna put a few bucks towards stupid tax? Second: Sure".

We put our money towards the schools, someone else wins, life goes on. We have this conversation every 3 to 4 months.

[shaggy]

I never play. In my less charitable moments, I think of the lottery as a Gullability Tax.

Your odds of winning are virtually the same if you DON'T buy a ticket.