# $1,300,000,000. You gonna play? (powerball) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 11, 2016, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754 "2016-01-11T00:43:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/21 "2016-01-11T15:30:15Z")
I think if I win, I’ll piss the world off and give half a billion to some door to door Christian missionary fund for use in the US and Canada. Ya hear that Og, I’m giving half to you…hint, hint. ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/22 "2016-01-11T15:43:27Z")
One of the things I love about my old office manager back in LA is that she still includes me on the group purchases whenever the jackpot gets high enough for her to be interested. So I’m already in. But now that I live in one of the very few states that allow lottery prizes to be claimed anonymously, I’ll buy on my own, as well. I can’t help but wonder what would happen if a single winner took home the jackpot, from a state that allows anonymity. How hard would less-scrupulous individuals work to track the person down? Could one simply bribe an employee of the store where the ticket was purchased to get ahold of the surveillance video? Would the Powerball folks actually try to convince the person to reveal himself/herself for the sake of their publicity? ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/23 "2016-01-11T16:01:30Z")
I’m in. Anything much over 200 million and what the Hell – its worth the shot in the dark. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/24 "2016-01-11T16:15:52Z")
I’m buying my own ticket. I picture any office pools for a billion dollars ending like the Lufthansa heist in _Goodfellas_😃 ---
**Author:** ![Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barkis_is_Willin)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/25 "2016-01-11T17:26:11Z")
I put in $10 when it was a measly $800M, so hell yeah I’m in it for a billion. ---
**Author:** ![Minnie\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Minnie\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Minnie_Luna)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/26 "2016-01-11T18:25:38Z")
I’m in 2 small pools. Our 3 person pool won $24 on Saturday, so we are rolling that over into new tickets for Wednesday. The other pool didn’t win anything, but we are going for it again. It’s entertainment, IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/27 "2016-01-11T18:31:32Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > I think if I win, I’ll piss the world off and give half a billion to some door to door Christian missionary fund for use in the US and Canada. Ya hear that Og, I’m giving half to you…hint, hint. Pretty sure calling him Og isn’t a way to curr his favor 😛 You hear that God? I had your back… ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/28 "2016-01-11T19:10:17Z")
I’ve never played any lottery before, but I threw $10 at it just now. Sure, it’s a sucker’s bet. But, what if… It’s weird, though. On the way home from the store, I was having some trouble imagining what I would actually _do_ with a billion dollars. After doing the typical stuff like making sure our kids were set up, helping out our families, I just… I can’t really conceive of suddenly having that kind of money. ---
**Author:** ![Sarabellum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarabellum/32/3492_2.png) [@Sarabellum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarabellum)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/29 "2016-01-11T19:19:43Z")
Most likely you wouldn’t have “that” kind of money. You’d lose half if you went with the cash payout, and another 40% of what was left to the government. Still plenty to muck around with. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/30 "2016-01-11T19:20:11Z")
> [@Bayard](#): > > Sure, it’s a sucker’s bet. But, what if… At this level, it actually isn’t. Lump sum payoff is approx $870 million, odds are somewhere around 296 million to 1, so you’re getting around $3 in value for each dollar you spend (hope I did that right) (not including lesser prizes, so presumably better than that). That’s of course assuming you win and are the only winner, but you can split it three ways and still have a positive expected value. ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/31 "2016-01-11T19:26:30Z")
In for a penny, in for a pound. Yes, my office pool is again putting in $5 each, just like last week. I’ll buy the lot at lunchtime tomorrow morning or so. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/32 "2016-01-11T19:37:43Z")
When it was at $900mil, [this article](http://www.techinsider.io/how-much-lottery-powerball-winner-takes-home-2016-1) put your minimum payout (after lump sum and worse case taxes) at $369mil. If my math isn’t failing me, that comes out to around $575mil or more depending on your state tax situation from a $1.4bil jackpot. Plenty of walkin’ around money. ---
**Author:** ![Obeseus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbce88/32.png) [@Obeseus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Obeseus)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/33 "2016-01-11T19:43:15Z")
Yes, I’m playing. I usually buy 2 or 3 tickets per week. If I buy something that costs $7.75 and hand over a ten, I’ll get a ticket with the change. A week ago, I hit Powerball for $100, so I had 5 tickets last Saturday, and I’ll probably go with 10 on Wednesday. Though I don’t play many tickets, I seem to be rather lucky by occasionally winning $4 or $7 and I’ve won $100 twice in the past year. I don’t keep track; I’m sure I’m in the negative overall, but not by a lot. That will change Wednesday when I win the big one. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/34 "2016-01-11T20:01:24Z")
> [@Folacin](#): > > At this level, it actually isn’t. Lump sum payoff is approx $870 million, odds are somewhere around 296 million to 1, so you’re getting around $3 in value for each dollar you spend (hope I did that right) (not including lesser prizes, so presumably better than that). > > That’s of course assuming you win and are the only winner, but you can split it three ways and still have a positive expected value. You forgot about taxes. I calculate current payout at about $530 million instead of your $870 million. Still more than walking around money, & more than enough that I bought in. I’m not betting the mortgage, more like a mid-tier chain restaurant meal over the past few drawings. Big deal, if I don’t want anything, I eat at home one extra time, but if I do win then I buy the entire chain as an investment. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/35 "2016-01-11T20:03:58Z")
I won’t be playing. It does look like this particular lottery has a better expected return than most, but I’m also seeing a fire sale over in the stock market. Time to buy low… ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/36 "2016-01-11T20:07:49Z")
Some people talk on and on about how a $2 lottery ticket isn’t worth it, yet drink $4 lattes. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/37 "2016-01-11T20:07:50Z")
How big a wallet do I need to walk around with 530 million dollars in cash? ---
**Author:** ![Eureka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/74df32/32.png) [@Eureka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eureka)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/38 "2016-01-11T20:12:52Z")
I’ve chipped in my two dollars to an office pool. I’m not going to be the sucker left behind in the unlikely event that they win. I’ve not played before, but they hit me at the right time to feel like $2 of comradery and hope were worth it. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/39 "2016-01-11T20:27:26Z")
I think if you win, everyone will claim to be your comrade. I feel real close to you right now. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754/40 "2016-01-11T20:39:55Z")
> [@Sarabellum1976](#): > > I’ve actually never played… but for a billion, I might just throw in my $2 this time. I’ve only ever bought tickets once, for my brother. I may waste $20 this time for myself. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1-300-000-000-you-gonna-play-powerball/742754.md?page=3)