Mega Meeeeeeeellions up to $355MM. Time to pay the stupid tax!

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disappoint

Lifer
Dec 7, 2009
10,132
382
126
At one point they were raking in a million dollars an hour. Seems there is no shortage of stupids willing to pay the stupid tax.
 
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Svnla

Lifer
Nov 10, 2003
17,986
1,388
126
At work now, did not win any $$$.

LOL @ some of the comments such as limit on the number of tickets a person could buy, how to buy a ticket, tickets would be good again for the next drawing and so on. Read the FAQs from the Mega Million, guys/gals.
 
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bfdd

Lifer
Feb 3, 2007
13,312
1
0
I'm never play mega millions again and I advice everyone from California to do the same. We just push our money out of state. We have a perfectly good state lotto, play that. We dump more into the mega millions than anyone else and that shit never wins here.
 

zinfamous

No Lifer
Jul 12, 2006
111,125
30,076
146
Anybody got the address of the winner in Washington, yet?

:hmm:

Ooo! Idaho is close, too!

:sneaky:
 

shocksyde

Diamond Member
Jun 16, 2001
5,539
0
0
Yet 2 people hit and not nearly 176 million played. probability is funny like that.

How do you know how many people played?

I don't think you can just take the current jackpot and subtract the previous jackpot to come up with that number. I know in MD, a portion of the ticket sales goes to the "Maryland Stadium Authority."
 

rcpratt

Lifer
Jul 2, 2009
10,433
110
116
At work now, did not win any $$$.

LOL @ some of the comments such as limit on the number of tickets a person could buy, how to buy a ticket, tickets would be good again for the next drawing and so on. Read the FAQs from the Mega Million, guys/gals.
Hey, most of us aren't usually stupid. Cut us some slack.
 

blinblue

Senior member
Jul 7, 2006
889
0
76
Imagine the disappointment when 4 8 15 16 23 42 are the winning numbers, and pot is split a hundred thousand ways...

If there was some way to be sure the plot isn't split, the expected value of $1 is about $1.60 (after taxes in my state), not bad at all. Except that it then goes below $1 if the pot is split, and with this many people playing, it seems highly likely.
 

IceBergSLiM

Lifer
Jul 11, 2000
29,932
3
81
How do you know how many people played?

I don't think you can just take the current jackpot and subtract the previous jackpot to come up with that number. I know in MD, a portion of the ticket sales goes to the "Maryland Stadium Authority."

I don't know exactly, pretty safe to say much less than half of the country played considering age and geographical restrictions and those that just don't play.
 

shocksyde

Diamond Member
Jun 16, 2001
5,539
0
0
I don't know exactly, pretty safe to say much less than half of the country played considering age and geographical restrictions and those that just don't play.

I understand your logic, but I think you're forgetting that not everyone buys 1 ticket.
 

zephyrprime

Diamond Member
Feb 18, 2001
7,512
2
81
Yet 2 people hit and not nearly 176 million played. probability is funny like that.
Since a ticket is $1 and the jackpot was 355MM before the lastest round, more than 355M tickets were sold. So in effect, way more than 176 million plays were made even though there were less than 176 million players..
 

mb

Lifer
Jun 27, 2004
10,233
2
71
Since a ticket is $1 and the jackpot was 355MM before the lastest round, more than 355M tickets were sold. So in effect, way more than 176 million plays were made even though there were less than 176 million players..
Um, no.. I already posted how many.. 229,421,186.
 

JTsyo

Lifer
Nov 18, 2007
11,816
952
126
Yet 2 people hit and not nearly 176 million played. probability is funny like that.

It's not the number of people that counts but the number of tickets. It would be more interesting if the made the numbers exclusive, so that only one winner would be possible. Probably too many transactions happening simultaneously for them to implement it though.
 

JMapleton

Diamond Member
Nov 19, 2008
4,179
2
81
Some guy in my city hit the 5 numbers and won $250k.

Get this, the guy was already a well known and well off used car dealership owner (not rich, but well off).
 

rcpratt

Lifer
Jul 2, 2009
10,433
110
116
Um, no.. I already posted how many.. 229,421,186.
I can't get to your link, but I'm sure that's just for this drawing, right? Obviously the total number of tickets sold for this jackpot is more than the jackpot itself, which is I think what he was saying.
 

IceBergSLiM

Lifer
Jul 11, 2000
29,932
3
81
Since a ticket is $1 and the jackpot was 355MM before the lastest round, more than 355M tickets were sold. So in effect, way more than 176 million plays were made even though there were less than 176 million players..

I wasn't talking about the cumulative tickets bought because they first/second/ect round tickets aren't good for any future rounds.
 

IceBergSLiM

Lifer
Jul 11, 2000
29,932
3
81
It's not the number of people that counts but the number of tickets. It would be more interesting if the made the numbers exclusive, so that only one winner would be possible. Probably too many transactions happening simultaneously for them to implement it though.

yeah I still don't thinik they came close to selling 176 million tickets. The jackpot would have been much larger
 

IceBergSLiM

Lifer
Jul 11, 2000
29,932
3
81
I understand your logic, but I think you're forgetting that not everyone buys 1 ticket.

no I realize that. Even still I don't think it came close.

Nevermind the numbers I was going on where way off

Per the numbers below 1.77 tickets were purchased per housing unit. Seems unbelievable but I guess my estimation for the number of degenerate gamblers is way off.
 
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mb

Lifer
Jun 27, 2004
10,233
2
71
I can't get to your link, but I'm sure that's just for this drawing, right? Obviously the total number of tickets sold for this jackpot is more than the jackpot itself, which is I think what he was saying.

I don't think you understand how the lottery works. The jackpot doesn't reset every time. If no one hits the jackpot it keeps going higher. And #s are only valid 1 time only.

But yes there were 229,421,186 picks sold for the $355M drawing.

Here's the progression:

Date...............Sales................Jackpot (millions)
1/4/2011........$229,421,186.........$355
12/31/2010.....$121,535,218.........$242
12/28/2010.....$57,470,434..........$200
12/24/2010.....$55,640,233..........$168
12/21/2010.....$42,033,969.......... $145
12/17/2010.....$37,827,825.......... $123
12/14/2010.....$31,269,168........... $104
12/10/2010.....$26,710,064 .......... $88
12/7/2010.......$23,220,936........... $74
12/3/2010.......$23,046,641........... $62
11/30/2010.... $19,803,778............. $52
11/26/2010.....$17,471,759............ $42
11/23/2010.....$18,086,478 .............$34
11/19/2010.....$18,590,582 ............ $25
11/16/2010.....$16,597,993............ $16
11/12/2010.....$17,689,735 ........... $12
 
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Eli

Super Moderator | Elite Member
Oct 9, 1999
50,419
8
81
Curious. So 67 people got 5+0 right.

Does that mean they split the 250k prize between 67 people? Or do you just win that amount individually with the lesser prizes?
 

mb

Lifer
Jun 27, 2004
10,233
2
71
Curious. So 67 people got 5+0 right.

Does that mean they split the 250k prize between 67 people? Or do you just win that amount individually with the lesser prizes?
They all get $250k. That's part of why not all of the sales proceeds go into the jackpot.