I have a theory I’ve yet to check out, but the next time we get one of those mega-jackpots for a lottery I have to try this.
Everyone wants to play when there are multi-millions up for grab, and when more enter the odds are higher against you or I winning.
So, I’ve always thought I should play the lottery the first week after a huge jackpot winner to enhance my chances of winning.
Truth be told, the odds of winning one of those big weekly jackpots, regardless of the prize, is roughly 1 in 300 million.
Statistics show I’d have a better chance of being killed by a vending machine: 1 in 112 million. (By the way, the typical American spends about $27 annually in vending machines.)
You have a better chance of catching the plague (1 in 46 million) than winning the lottery. Watch out while vacationing on one of those Pacific islands.
You stand a 1 in 50.7 million chance of being killed by a falling coconut. Seems a 5-pounder falling from a height of 100 feet packs a literal ton of force. Excedrin moment, perhaps?
Your chances of becoming president of these United States figures out to be 1 in 32.6 million. Wait a minute before you buy your own copy of “Hail to the Chief.”
If you go hiking in the hills, you have a 1 in 32 million chance of being attacked and killed by a mountain lion. Experts suggest that if you encounter one of those big kitties in the wild, you should try to make eye contact and make a lot of noise. Does high-pitched screaming count?
Did I hear you say you were headed to Florida? Statistics show you have a one in 11.5 million chance of being attacked by a shark.
Planning on sainthood? The odds of that happening are one in 9.2 million of becoming a saint — unless you play pro football in New Orleans.
Be careful on the African safari because there’s a 1 in 2.5 million chance that you’ll be killed by a hippopotamus. Outrun it? Probably not. Those creatures, sometimes tipping the scales at 3 tons, can hit 14 miles an hour when they need to sprint.
Becoming an astronaut? Odds against that happening are 1.9 million to one. John Glenn, Neil Armstrong and Gus Grissom were rare birds, indeed.
While singing “Pennies From Heaven,” we warbled “So when you hear it thunder, don’t run under a tree.” Your odds of being struck by a bolt from the blue are about 1 in 1 million that lightning can find you.
Now, this entire feature was based on odds of winning the lottery.
Did you know that your chance of becoming a millionaire by non-lottery means are pretty reasonable? With compounding interest rates and such, just 30-1 if you invest wisely and save aggressively.
Hey duffers! Odds are 12,000 to 1 for the average hacker to get a hole-in-one. So, if you play 18 holes a week, you should card an ace once every 13 years.
For the typical amateur bowler, odds of rolling a perfect 300 game are 1 in 11,500, but if you’re on the Professional Bowlers Association tour, it’s more like 1 in 460.
If you cheer for a MLB team, you have a 1 in 835 chance to catch a foul ball, but to catch two in a row the odds are 1 in 1.1 billion.
The oddsmakers also say you have a 1 in 650,000 chance to be dealt a royal flush on the opening hand of a game of poker.
Now, when I stroll through the yard, I always like to look for a 4-leaf clover. Just a 1 in 10,000 chance clovers are 4-leafers. However, in 2014 an Australian woman found 21 one of them in her front yard.
Watch what you eat because there’s a 1 in 6 chance you’ll get food poisoning.
On a serious note, once you turn 65, 3 out of every 4 women, and a little more than half of the men, will need some sort of long-term health care, and 25-year-old folks today have a 6 to 10% chance of making it to 100.
So, what are the odds?
If you flip a coin it’s 50-50.
Rock, paper, scissors anyone?
