Category Archives: Gambling

Fifth-largest lottery pot in the US up for grabs with Mega Millions

For some, playing the lottery is a religious experience. There’s nothing more thrilling than the chance to convert $2 into millions, but the odds of hitting all the right numbers are astronomical. According to data from Lottery U.S.A., hitting the Mega Millions lottery top prize has odds of 1 in 302.6 million. The interstate lottery in the U.S. always draws huge crowds, especially as the jackpot prize increases each time the winning numbers fail to find a match. The Mega Millions reached $670 million this week before the latest numbers were drawn last night and, with another lost chance at becoming an instant multi-millionaire, the jackpot now rolls over to $750 million.

This new jackpot is the fifth-largest in the history of U.S. lotteries. The winning numbers were 12, 14, 26, 28 and 33, with the necessary Mega Ball needed to complete the set landing on 9. There have now been 34 consecutive Mega Millions draws that haven’t found a winner, with Adrian Tongson of Wisconsin the last person to claim a jackpot. He won $119 million last September before the lottery started over and began accumulating its latest massive pot.

Even though the jackpot didn’t hit last night, there were still plenty of big winners. Nine people were able to match five numbers, minus the Mega Ball, which will allow them to collect a minimum of $1 million. One of the winners opted for the Mega Millions Megaplier option, which will double the winnings. Of those, one was a nurse in Florida who has been on the front lines combatting the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to these winners, another 116 matched four numbers and the Mega Ball, which will allow them to collect $10,000. All the prizes, of course, are subject to verification and a percentage loss needed to be given up to tax collectors. The odds of winning $1 million in the Mega Millions lottery are 1 in 12.6 million and are 1 in 931,001 to win $10,000. 

The largest lottery in U.S. history was found in January 2016, when $1.586 billion was won in the Powerball lottery, a competitor of Mega Millions. However, it didn’t go to one single winner – the pot was split between three people in California, Florida and Tennessee, all of whom had chosen the correct numbers. Of the largest five lottery jackpots, three have gone to the Powerball and two to Mega Millions; all five have been seen in the last six years. The fourth-largest was the $758.7 million in the Powerball in August 2017, and the third was the Powerball’s $768.4 million jackpot in March 2019. In October 2018, Mega Millions awarded $1.537 billion to put it on the list as the second-largest pot to ever be awarded. That prize went to a single anonymous winner in South Carolina and, instead of opting for the lifetime payout, chose to take a lump-sum prize of “only” $878 million and walk away.

Winning Poker Strategy: When Luck Doesn’t Even Out Over Time

I was reading a post in a poker forum the other day. In it, a newbie wrote about a bad beat he suffered, and asked for advice on dealing with the funk he was in because of it. One of the more experienced and intelligent members of the forum, trying to be helpful, wrote back “Just remember that luck evens out over time.”

When it comes to luck, it’s as much about how you look as it is how you feel. (Image: Gaby Stein/Pixabay)

It’s a comforting salve to be sure, this oft-repeated phrase. And, surely, it can help players avoid going on tilt after a bad beat — I don’t fault anyone for saying it. Yet even as I admit the comforting effects of such an utterance, I know that “Luck will even out in the long run” is also one of the greatest fallacies in poker.

Luck Rarely Evens Out

Doug Polk Punts Big Lead, Then Regroups for Huge Win on Day 27

Doug Polk blew a $175,000 lead on Day 27 before regrouping to book his first winning session in quite some time against Daniel Negreanu. He ended a five session losing streak and turned the match back in his favor.

Doug Polk stopped the momentum that was heading in Daniel Negreanu’s direction. (Image: YouTube)

The previously long-time feuding poker pros have now completed 27 sessions of $200/$400 no-limit hold’em on WSOP.com. Over that span, they’ve played 15,850 hands and have 9,150 remaining before the epic grudge match concludes.

Through Day 19, Negreanu trailed by $950,000 and appeared to be on track to lose potentially more than $2 million. But he turned the tides and went on quite an impressive winning streak, eliminating half the deficit in just seven sessions.