Lottery officials forsee $500 million Mega Millions jackpots

Comment #29

sergiou2 — Wed, 11 May 2005 04:23:44 GMT

I also think MM is the better lottery to play. I live in a state that has Powerball but I drive across the Great River to play Mega Millions. It just has better prizes. I read a while back that PB was considering limiting the increases to $25 million. My question is what happens to the rest of that money. You know when the jackpot gets high, more people play.

Comment #28

dvdiva — Tue, 10 May 2005 09:06:11 GMT

I don't get how anyone could ask what the difference between 300 and 500 million is. I hope you hire a non-enron accountant to do your tax if you win. The irs will know the difference. Plus people always seem to forget that if you win 500 million you don't get a check for 500 million. you will only get 1/3 or less. Something that just keeps escaping people.

Comment #27

golotto — Mon, 09 May 2005 20:16:59 GMT

I can see either MM or PB passing another $315 million with a fortunate run. As far as $500 million, even with the new matrices plus California for MM, I'm a little skeptical. I'd love to be proven wrong.

Comment #26

LOTTOMIKE — Mon, 09 May 2005 19:54:04 GMT

.....but powerball does have the multiplier that is one advantage powerball does have....

Comment #25

LOTTOMIKE — Mon, 09 May 2005 19:53:07 GMT

i think one of the reasons would be mega millions has higher jackpots more often.then you have that match 5 rule where the jackpot can't get but to a certain amount.also mega millions pay out more if you match all 5 numbers correctly.........

Comment #24

Todd — Mon, 09 May 2005 19:47:31 GMT

Comment #23

Todd — Mon, 09 May 2005 19:47:25 GMT

How...

Comment #22

LOTTOMIKE — Mon, 09 May 2005 19:30:38 GMT

mega millions has a better edge over powerball as the game to play.....

Comment #21

tg636 — Mon, 09 May 2005 19:09:01 GMT

And yet if you look at the Forbes lists, you see that the truly rich have many multiples of $500 million, so it's all relative. Of course I don't need $500 or $300 million to have the life I want, but having that money would put me in a position to help a lot of people and that is power I would like to have.

Comment #20

smd173 — Mon, 09 May 2005 17:34:42 GMT

How is it lame? That's just greed kicking in there. There is no difference between $300 Million and $500 Million unless you aspire to be an owner of an NFL team.The Match 5 Bonus rule for Powerball is a great idea. To cap the prize and rolldown millions to the 5 out of 6 prize level. Then you could have multiple millionaires.But the Match 5 Bonus hasn't even ever been hit.

Comment #19

timmurtaugh — Mon, 09 May 2005 16:29:06 GMT

I found it interesting that last year, very little was made of the fact that soldier who won $150 million, did it by buying just one ticket. And yet maybe that happens more than I'd care to realize. Someone's buying tickets for 25 years, doesn't win a dime and another who's never even seen a lottery ticket before, ends up winning the jackpot.

Comment #18

JimmySand9 — Mon, 09 May 2005 05:25:28 GMT

I doubt we'll see $500 million for a while, even with CA.

Comment #17

Tnplayer805 — Mon, 09 May 2005 03:43:18 GMT

If MM ever got to half a billion, I think everyone even those who believe it's wrong to gamble with play. Lines would be long. I like standing in line for tickets though. Just to think if no one wins this time, there will be a great rollover prize.

Comment #16

Todd — Sun, 08 May 2005 23:59:55 GMT

For #2, in theory I guess it's possible, but in reality it's impossible. given the realities of the situation, there is absolutely no way to buy all the Mega Millions combinations, especially with the new matrix with 176m combos. Logistically it could never be done. Also, since lottery transactions for the most part need to be handled in cash, there's very little chance of having $176 million in cash to do it.

Comment #15

DoctorEw220 — Sun, 08 May 2005 23:51:49 GMT

Here's what I don't quite get. 1. Their computer says that there is a high probability of a $500 million jackpot (Probably going to a Californian). Remember when computers were going to revert back to 1900? Anyway, are they taking into account that a huge lottery-playing population could work both ways? It could result in a high probability of a huge jackpot, but it could also result in several low jackpots getting hit.2. How can they expect to have a jackpot in which the cash option was bigger... [ More ]

Comment #14

PrisonerSix — Sun, 08 May 2005 23:03:13 GMT

Interesting question which doesn't have a definite answer because it will depend on the states involved. If you were to win in another state which has a state income tax, they will withhold federal and state income taxes from your winnings. What you would probably have to do is file a non-resident tax return in that state for those winnings. How nonresident income is taxed varies from state to state, so check the websites of the taxation departments of the states you are wondering about(the o... [ More ]

Comment #13

LOTTOMIKE — Sun, 08 May 2005 21:25:40 GMT

i've been doing a poll on if there will be a 500 million jackpot these past weeks......

Comment #12

ryanm — Sun, 08 May 2005 20:48:53 GMT

Powerball needs Florida more than Mega Millions does. Especially since Powerball is increasing their matrix as well, they need more states to support higher rollovers. It is totally bogus to increase the matrix without higher rollovers to compensate for it.

Comment #11

weshar75 — Sun, 08 May 2005 19:21:04 GMT

It will be really interesting and exciting to see a 500 million jackpot for mega millions if it does happen in the next year.

Comment #10

MPJO — Sun, 08 May 2005 18:56:17 GMT

I think once the MM jackpot goes to $400 or $500 million and half the state of Florida is driving to Georgia to buy MM tickets somebody in Florida is going to start to ask to get MM in the state.They can hold out for awhile longer but, I think the people of Florida would like to get Mega Millions in their state.It's the right thing to do. Mike

Comment #9

dvdiva — Sun, 08 May 2005 18:28:19 GMT

They would have to change the matrix again if Florida joined. Plus Powerball has the incredibly lame rule regarding limits to a record pot. The only lottery that even has a chance at 400+ is Mega. Good thing I live in a Mega state that is also income tax free

Comment #8

Tnplayer805 — Sun, 08 May 2005 18:21:07 GMT

I wish FL would join Powerball.

Comment #7

fxdwg — Sun, 08 May 2005 17:39:30 GMT

Thanks for the info: Not that I really have any expectations of ever hitting a large prize. I do enjoy the game of what if.

Comment #6

CASH Only — Sun, 08 May 2005 17:21:47 GMT

FL won't go multi-state under Jeb Bush.

Comment #5

Todd — Sun, 08 May 2005 17:16:40 GMT

My guess is that Fla would join Powerball instead of MM. The Mega Millions group mentioned a while ago that after signing up their next major state (which ended up being California), that they would not be looking to expand further.

Comment #4

MPJO — Sun, 08 May 2005 16:42:02 GMT

Now all Mega Millions needs to do is focus on getting Florida to join.

Comment #3

smd173 — Sun, 08 May 2005 13:27:05 GMT

Yeah and Mega Millions was supposed to have $400 Million jackpots the last time they changed the matrix.

Comment #2

Thomas Covenant — Sun, 08 May 2005 13:20:45 GMT

You will have to pay a withholding tax when you pick up your lottery check, but you will be credited that amount when you pay your state tax.

Comment #1

fxdwg — Sun, 08 May 2005 12:34:06 GMT

I have a question for the more knowledgeable lottery players than I.Occasionally I will slip into Indiana to play power ball. My question is if I was ever so lucky to hit a taxable prize would I be required to pay Indiana taxes as well as my own states?I do see that Arizona has a non resident tax of 6% but nothing is said of the other states? I find that the lure of the power play is strong enough for me to try my luck---- a 100k with a power play would be a good prize

Lottery officials forsee $500 million Mega Millions jackpots

Lottery Post — Sun, 08 May 2005 11:54:00 GMT

California, the Golden State, will bring a lot of green to the Mega Millions Lottery jackpots when the state joins the multistate game next month. That's green as in greenbacks.Mega Millions Lottery officials expect jackpots, under the right circumstances, to reach a staggering half of a billion dollars, said Michigan Lottery Commissioner Gary Peters. With California in, the computer model says there is a high probability of a $500 million Mega Millions jackpot, Peters said. The largest Mega Mi... [ More ]