The jackpot for Saturday’s Powerball drawing has climbed to $800 million dollars, making it the biggest lottery prize in U.S. history.
But with big money comes tiny odds — extremely tiny, an estimated one in 292.2 million. That means you’re far more likely to hit a hole in one or get killed by a cow, than win the Powerball prize. So John Stufken, who a statistics professor at Arizona State University, won’t be playing.
However, buying one lottery ticket — or many — isn’t a bad thing, Stufken said, just as long as you know what you’re getting into.
“If people do it to make money, they shouldn’t do it, because chances you’re going to make money out of it is just about nil,” he said. “But if you do it because you enjoy doing it, why not?
His father loved the lotto, Stufken said. He played the German lottery every week and kept track of the frequency of numbers that were drawn in big binders. But he never hit it big.
