The Powerball jackpot swelled to $1.3 billion on Monday night after nobody matched the winning numbers.
That means even more people will continue to buy tickets for the next drawing, on Wednesday — growing the eye-popping lottery payout.
This is exactly what lotto commissioners envisioned ten years ago when they changed the odds of the game — making it harder to win and extending the time between jackpot payouts.
Following a slump in sales, the Powerball saw a major rule change in 2015 that increased the ball pool numbers from 59 to 69, while also decreasing the numbers for the final Powerball pick from 35 to 26.
The shift made it easier for players to win smaller prizes, but it also made the odds of winning the top prize soar to 1 in 292.2 million.
Why have prize pools gotten bigger?
Prior to the 2015 change, the chances of winning the lottery was 1 in 175.2 million, but the odds of winning any prize at all was 1 in 31.
The change allowed for smaller prizes to become more common and made the game more attractive to players.
It also allowed fewer chances to win the big jackpot, letting it swell over time and rake in even more players who are drawn by the ever-growing grand prize.
Since the change, there have been five Powerball jackpots over $1 billion. Prior to the new rules, the record for Powerball was a measly $590 million.
Mega Millions — the other big lotto jackpot game — also changed its rules and has racked up seven drawings over $1 billion.
The Powerball itself has drawn more attention after the Mega Millions lottery increased the price of its tickets from $2 to $5 in April.
By contrast, the Powerball is only $2 a ticket.
(Tickets are $3 in Idaho and Montana,)
What are your chances of winning the lottery?
To put into context just how slim players’ chances actually are, you are more likely to flip a coin heads 28 times in a row than pick the winning numbers.
A person is also much more likely to be struck by lightning twice, be eaten by a shark, die in a plane crash or even be elected president of the United States — the latter of which has estimated odds of 1 in 32.6 million.
Lottery expert Tim Chartier came up with his own exercise to show just how unlikely a person is to win the lottery.
“I’m going to pick 1 second in the last 9.2 years. Now, tell me which second I picked. That’s the same odds as you winning Powerball!” the Davidson University mathematician said.
What can you do to improve your odds?
Improving your odds is as simple as buying more tickets, but even purchasing 100 drawings may not be enough.
“If I pick 1 second in the last 9.2 years, having 100 guesses helps but it’s still VERY unlikely,” Chartier pointed out.
The professor noted that picking random numbers is the better way to go, as having entirely random numbers improves your odds of not having to share your winnings if you do hit the jackpot.
Chartier also warned people not to dismiss any of the numbers that have already shown up in the prize pool, like Monday’s Powerball pick — five.
“Remember, the numbers are picked at random. So, five is still as likely as it ever was,” he said.
When is the next Powerball drawing?
The next drawing will be held on Wednesday, Sept. 3, at 11 p.m.
Players can check the drawings live on Powerball.com
Read the full article here