re: #320 freetoken

As I’ve previously noted, once jackpots get large then they become fodder for news stories:

Everything you need to know about Wednesday’s $550 million Powerball jackpot

At around 2:00 the reporter notes that the general odds of winning in Powerball is about one in 25, she then claims that these are not bad odds and that you can win one of several smaller awards.

While you can win smaller amounts, the return on these lotteries is abysmal by usual gambling standards.

PB gives you $4 for getting the right PowerBall number (the red number), but you have a one in 26 chance of picking that for any play you buy. $4/26 = an expected value of 15 cents. For a $2 ticket.

Why oh why can’t news outlets find reporters who know something about math?

I play PB twice a week, two draws a ticket (one Quick Draw, one with my own numbers, both with PowerPlay), when I remember to buy the tickets; for 12 bucks a week, it’s cheap entertainment and I’m fortunately in a financial position where I can easily spare the money to play, though I realize that many who play are spending money they really shouldn’t or can’t spare (as it is for pretty much all lottery games).

However, as the man said, you can’t win if you don’t play; to me, while I am fortunate to have enough money to pay the bills and save some (but am not, by any means, anything remotely approaching rich), some nice daydreams are worth 12 bucks a week.