# So I drank the right beer, beat the odds, and won a prize

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-drank-the-right-beer-beat-the-odds-and-won-a-prize/416515>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [August 22, 2007, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-drank-the-right-beer-beat-the-odds-and-won-a-prize/416515 "2007-08-22T16:31:03Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\
**Post date:** [August 23, 2007, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-drank-the-right-beer-beat-the-odds-and-won-a-prize/416515/41 "2007-08-23T17:14:47Z")

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When I signed up for the milage program of ANA (airline), they were running a promotion and a few people got $500 travel vouchers. I didn’t even pay attention until they sent me my in the mail.

One of my customers has a big end of the year party, and the first prize is $1,000. They give it away at the end of the event, afterwhich everyone crowds out to get their coats from the clock room. I was tempted to leave early, but decided to wait. Everyone was given a number in order of when you came, and there were a couple hundred people there. They had a machine spinning numbers, starting with the greatest significent digit first, then work down.

I decided to wait by the exit, and if any of my numbers didn’t come up, I’d leave first and beat the crowd. The first number was a zero, (50% change) so I stayed. Next came an 8, so suddenly I had a 10% chance. My number hit and I got the $1,000.

I won a Sony PSP at another company party.

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