Powerball Odds To Increase In Search Of Bigger Jackpots

July 10, 2015


With bigger payouts typically drawing more players, the multi-state Powerball lottery game is increasing the odds to win jackpots.

Starting with the Octobrt 7 drawing, the odds of matching the numbers on a single $2 ticket with the numbers on the drawn balls will grow from 1 in 175,223,510 to 1 in 292,201,338.

Florida Lottery Secretary Cynthia O’Connell said in an email  that since the state joined the game in 2009 there has been a push for larger jackpots.

“Over time, the standard for what is considered a ‘big jackpot’ has changed and we must respond to that,” O’Connell said in the email. “Our sales prove that more Powerball tickets are sold when the jackpot is bigger, and sales decline significantly when jackpots are at lower levels.”

While winning jackpots will be tougher, odds are being eased for smaller payouts. Also starting Octobrt 7, the odds of hitting four correct numbers will go from the current 1 in 111 to 1 in 92. The odds changes are being made by altering the sets of numbers on tickets. The changes come as sales of Powerball nationally have dipped 19 percent in the past year due to a lack of large jackpots.

Powerball, the highest-generating terminal game in the Florida Lottery’s arsenal, accounted for $375 million of the state agency’s record-setting $5.58 billion in sales during the fiscal year that ended June 30. However, the number was well off the $469 million generated a year earlier.

by The News Service of Florida

Pictured: The nation’s only winning $80 million Powerball ticket was sold at the State Line Gift Shop on Highway 97 in NorthEscambia.com. The winner, 60-year old Alice Dawson of Frisco City, AL, chose to receive the winnings as a one-time, lump-sum payment of $53,440,213.76. NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.

Comments

5 Responses to “Powerball Odds To Increase In Search Of Bigger Jackpots”

  1. M in Bratt on July 13th, 2015 10:31 am

    Does anybody remember when the original Fla. Lotto used to regularly go to 50 mil plus, and it went up by 4 or 5 mil a week? Then they lessened the odds to make it pay out less more often. Isn’t it strange that they are using opposite logic to justify the changes to Powerball?

  2. Jason on July 10th, 2015 10:30 pm

    @EPenn — what this story doesnt include is how the Lottery is changing the odds of winning. Currently players select five numbers between 1 and 59 and then select a powerball number between 1 and 35.

    Starting in October, a player will select five numbers from between 1 and 69 and a powerball from between 1 and 26.

    These pending changes is what changes the odds of a player winning. Its not that the Lottery “has ignored your winning numbers in order to run the pot higher”.

    I dont generally play the Powerball Lottery, unless the jackpot exceeds $250 million barrier. But with the new estimated jackpots to be in the range of a BILLION dollars, I may opt to wait for the jackpot to increase past $500 million before playing again.

  3. Maggie on July 10th, 2015 8:47 am

    Dave Ramsey nailed it calling it a “stupid tax”. Maybe sales dropped because people wised up. Also, food costs are increasing steadily leaving less to play with.

  4. Patriot on July 10th, 2015 7:53 am

    Lottery is a tax for people who don’t understand math. Looks like they’re getting a tax hike!

  5. EPenn on July 10th, 2015 7:31 am

    So, what they are telling us is that it’s rigged… If you can change the odds of “random”, then it’s not really random, it’s controlled… you may want to ask yourself how many times your numbers have come up but they were ignored by the computer to run the pot higher…

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News