Explain these lottery statistics, please

Factual Questions
1

OK, I might be missing something, but here’s what I understand:

In my state (and maybe others, too), the lottery works this way:

Choose five unique numbers from 1 thru 53, and one number from 1 thru 42 (the Powerball number).

If you get the get the Powerball number, and none of the previous 5, you still win $3.

If you get the Powerball number, and match any of the five, your prize goes up–up to matching all 5 and winning the big jackpot.

OK, no problem, so far.

The lottery “cards” explaining the odds say that the odds of matching the Powerball number are 1 in 70.

That’s where I get lost. I have 42 numbers to choose from, but my chances of winning are 1 in 70.

Any ideas???

2

I would guess that the odds are based not on pure chance but on the fact that some numbers get picked (by the people buying the cards) more often than others.

3

They’re not giving you the odds of matching the Powerball, they’re giving you the odds of matching the Powerball AND missing all of the other numbers.

4

Cabbage is correct: 1 in 70 ( in fact, roughly 1 in 70.39) are the odds of getting the $3 prize.

5

Thanks!

6

I should have said, “WAG quotient of my post: 42 out of 70.”

:wink: