is the name of this new game, and there will only be 4 million of these tickets sold, and may sell out quicker... because the grand prize is $20 million to be paid all at once; there are also 10 $1 million prizes and 40 $250,000 prizes. The lottery will get $80 million and pay out $40 million...making a neat profit of 50%. The only good thing about this is that the prizes will be paid out all at once, rather than the usual 20 year annuity.
However, you won't like the odds one bit.
The odds of winning $20 million are 1:4,000,000; the odds of winning $1 million are 1:400,000; the odds of winning $250,000 are 1:100,000 and the overall odds of winning a prize in the “Star Spangled Sweepstakes” are 1:78,431.37.Excuse the heck out of us, but what would possess someone to pursue a game with odds of almost 1 in 79,000? Ah, yes, the lottery's PR tells the tale...
The odds of winning cash prizes of this magnitude are the best the Massachusetts Lottery has ever offered.Oh, really? We guess those $5 million prizes on those $10 instant tix mean little, huh? And for one freakin' drawing on July 4th!?
Here's our suggestion...if you're going to sell $20 tickets, make every ticket a winner (i.e. odds of 1 in 1) - and all the prizes need not be cash, trips, cars, or "fantasy" stuff like Yankees/Sox games for a decade, with the ability to have the Jumbotron spell out your name. Gift cards, full four year scholarships to colleges of your choice, your mortgage or rent paid for life...or even a brand new home, everything paid (including property taxes)?
$20 million is nice, but not at $20 per ticket.
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