With Friday’s Mega Millions jackpot now at a whopping $640 million, ticket sales are brisk all over Southern California.
At convenience, liquor and grocery stores, customers are lining up hoping one of the tickets in their hands will be the big winner.
But at $1 a ticket, what are the odds of picking a Mega Millions winning ticket?
According to Dr. Ken Alexander, a mathematics professor at USC, the odds of winning are one in 175.7 million.
That raises the question – with the jackpot expected to be $540 million, why not guarantee you win by buying all 175 million possible ticket combinations?
“Well, a number of things get in the way of that,” Alexander said.
Assuming 350 million tickets are sold, there’s a better than 90 percent chance that there will be at least two winners. So after taxes, you’ll likely come out with a loss.
Local
But what about the strategy of choosing outlets that have previously sold winners?
"If you buy them from some store that sells a lot of tickets, then the store is more likely to have a winner,” Alexander said. “But your 10 (tickets) have the same probability as if you buy them from anywhere else.”
Keep up to date on breaking news: Download our improved iPhone app, follow us on Twitter @nbcsandiego, fan us on Facebook, sign up for our breaking news e-mail alerts or text SDBREAKING to 622339 to receive text messages for local breaking news. (For more info, text HELP. To end, text STOP. Message and data rates may apply.)
