13 State Employees to Share $224 Million Powerball Lottery Jackpot

Comment #48

KY Floyd — Sat, 22 Apr 2006 18:02:01 GMT

I'll also state something clearly and concisely: Pigs can fly.

There! That obviously makes it true. If anything, the big fake checks are more deceptive than advertising the annuity value. Everybody knows that a check for n dollars means that when you cash it you actually get n dollars.

I can't imagine there is any other business that offers more truth in advertising than a lottery. Chuck can come here and spin it all he wants, but if lotteries are truly interested in truthful adver... [ More ]

Comment #47

truecritic — Sat, 22 Apr 2006 16:56:46 GMT

I definitely think if someone is posed for a photograph with a $220 million check, they should be able to take that to the bank and get $220 million!

Of course it is deceptive if they can't do that

Comment #46

Todd — Sat, 22 Apr 2006 16:33:56 GMT

I will state something clearly and consisely as well: holding a check with the annuity payout amount is not deceptive advertising.

I have provided the reasons in prior posts, so there's no need to muddy my clear and concise message with that

Comment #45

Uncle Jim — Sat, 22 Apr 2006 16:29:33 GMT

Todd,

When someone wins $102 million and the lottery takes, uses and advertises a photo of them holding a check for $220 million it most certainly is Decptive Advertising. And it is indeed a sad day in America and a triumph for Clintonesque values when the only defense offered for a deliberate mischaracterization is to say, everyone does it.

I am not picking on Powerball nor am I as you so eloquently characterize it attempting to rip Powerball a new one. I am expressing my opposition to

Comment #44

Todd — Sat, 22 Apr 2006 11:02:59 GMT

JIM:

Every lottery in the USA shows the winners holding a check with the annuity payout amount listed, not the cash value. Why are you picking on Powerball? If every lottery does it, then it is not a valid point to be used in your attempt to rip Powerball a new one.

You may not like that they do it, but it is certainly not deceptive advertising . You should be more judicious in your use of that term. There are some real scam artists out there ripping people off, and to lump Powerball

Comment #43

Uncle Jim — Sat, 22 Apr 2006 05:22:50 GMT

@Todd:

My appologies to you and all other Lottery Post members for my very poor choice of the the word we. That was a major gaff on my part as it clearly implied I was speaking for other people including the staff at Lottery Post...which I am not. I am speaking strictly for myself. I absolutely believe that there are other members here who share my point of view. (But perhaps not because no one else has joined in this opportunity to speak directly to one of the Powers that be. ) Regar... [ More ]

Comment #42

chuck32 — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 18:42:22 GMT

Quote: Originally posted by Uncle Jim on April 21, 2006 OK Chuck...so you're not high enough up the MUSL foodchain to get a bonus. Bummer! You deserve one.

Just a couple of points:

I don't want to hold the lottery to a different standard. I want to hold them to the same standard any other business is held to. Most notably truth in advertising.

The bottom line with me is this...It's clear Powerball doesn't want winners at the lower level. They want to advertise a great minimum pri... [ More ]

Comment #41

Todd — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 15:23:15 GMT

Jim: We don't disagree with actions taken, you do. I'm not convinced that Powerball's increasing annuity is necessarily a bad thing, as many people have voiced. And as I've said before, an increase in number of jackpots was an actual phenomina, not just a perceived one, and the states felt they had to do something in order to protect their #1 most important game.

Comment #40

Uncle Jim — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 14:31:12 GMT

Damn! I assumed I was talking to a MUSL employee but I didn't know I was talking to THE MAN!

Oops!

Jim

PS We do appreciate your input Chuck. Even if we strongly disagree with the actions taken we want to hear your point of view.

Comment #39

Todd — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 14:14:27 GMT

Chuck, you go on damming things up here. We all appreciate your input.

Comment #38

Todd — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 14:12:32 GMT

Jim: I think Chuck is high enough on the ladder to get whatever bonus exists. And he knows what he's talking about. (He better, or we're all in trouble

Comment #37

Uncle Jim — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 14:07:56 GMT

Oops..I forgot:

Winingssubjecttoallapplicablestatelocalandfederaltaxes.Thenamesandpicturesofallwinnerswillbereleasedtothepressatthetimetheycollecttheirprize.Prizemoneytakes10daysto6weekstocollect.Winnersareadvisedtomoveandchangetheirphonenumberbeforecollectingtheirprize.

Jim

Comment #36

Uncle Jim — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 14:03:35 GMT

OK Chuck...so you're not high enough up the MUSL foodchain to get a bonus. Bummer! You deserve one.

Just a couple of points:

I don't want to hold the lottery to a different standard. I want to hold them to the same standard any other business is held to. Most notably truth in advertising.

The bottom line with me is this...It's clear Powerball doesn't want winners at the lower level. They want to advertise a great minimum prize but they also want to make sure nobody wins it. As... [ More ]

Comment #35

chuck32 — Thu, 20 Apr 2006 18:34:31 GMT

You can still die before spending the cash. You must be planning one great day after leaving the lottery office.

Comment #34

CASH Only — Thu, 20 Apr 2006 18:03:09 GMT

chuck:

I will NEVER take annuity. There's no guarantee I will live long enough to collect in full.

Comment #33

chuck32 — Thu, 20 Apr 2006 13:38:06 GMT

Ha! No extra money coming my way. It just strikes me as odd that many people hold lotteries to a different standard. I guess it is because they are owned by the states and we are all owners of the state. But kind of like yellling I pay your salary at the police officer who writes you a ticket.

I see comments like If they were not the lottery, the AG would be on them for fraud (or whatever). What? I just saw a Best Buy TV add selling a 42 inch plasma screen that is sure to keep yo... [ More ]

Comment #32

Uncle Jim — Thu, 20 Apr 2006 05:01:50 GMT

And maybe someone got their bonus check from MUSL today.

Jim

Comment #31

chuck32 — Thu, 20 Apr 2006 02:15:48 GMT

There are lots of unresolved anger issues here against the lottery. Maybe someone was abused by the lottery as a child?

Actually, two or three jackpot hits a year can make a tremendous different in revenue. Also important - even more so - is how the jackpots occured (lots of little ones or a couple of big ones?). Last year Powerball slipped under $2 billion in sales. This year, after the change, they will approach $3 billion in sales. People vote with their dollars. One can argue that

Comment #30

Uncle Jim — Tue, 18 Apr 2006 13:17:54 GMT

Hi Floyd,

Thanks for the input. It seems our thinking is similar on this matter. I would very much like to hear what Todd has to say on this subject.

Other than that just a few comments:

I never watched Happy Days but DAMN...I must lead a culturly deprived life because I never heard the phrase jump the shark before. From reading the wikipedia info I gather that Todd meant people were wondering if Powerball had strayed from it's original intent which was to raise as much money for t... [ More ]

Comment #29

psykomo — Tue, 18 Apr 2006 06:07:07 GMT

CONGRATTS to these workers.................!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

They know HOW to stay in the fast lane.................

LOTTO POOL ...........fool retire toomorrow

remember.....it's your $$$ @@@WK

LOL

PSYKOMO

Comment #28

psykomo — Tue, 18 Apr 2006 05:47:31 GMT

WHAT you TONKIN BOUT...........DoubleDown???????????

Them State worker's know ....how.....to work, don't THEY?????

ANJOYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY.......the......... MONEYY!

LOL......................................QUICK>>>>TRICK$$$

PSYKOMO

Comment #27

KY Floyd — Tue, 18 Apr 2006 05:26:04 GMT

The powerball results for 2005 are a phenomenon in the same sense that the sun coming up in the morning is a phenomenon. The only thing special about a bunch of lottery officials getting their panties in a twist is that it gives us some insight into how they think (or don't think). As near as I can tell what we learned was that they don't understand the probability that their game is based on, and/or that their interest in what gets paid out is strictly a function of their interest in what comes... [ More ]

Comment #26

Uncle Jim — Tue, 18 Apr 2006 03:32:16 GMT

OK...it's not a debating tactic of mine and I certainly don't think your remarks are stupid. I had a little trouble with your use of the phrase ...whether Powerball has jumped the shark. I don't know what the phrase jumped the shark means. Would you please explain it to me so that we can clear up any misunderstanding I may have.

So let's start over. Simply put my position is:

There were only 3 more jackpots won in 2005 than in 2004. There were only 2 more jackpots won in 200... [ More ]

Comment #25

Todd — Tue, 18 Apr 2006 02:26:10 GMT

Well, if you re-read what I actually said, and not put words in my mouth, you'd see that I never said it spelled the end of Powerball .

Is it a debating technique of yours to try and make my statements seem stupid by inserting your own meaning into my argument?

I'm trying to give you some insight into the ways things work, and you seem intent on keeping those blinders on.

WHATEVER

Comment #24

Uncle Jim — Tue, 18 Apr 2006 02:00:01 GMT

Todd,

I grant and I freely concede that I'm not an expert in these things. If the entire industry thinks that a grand total of 3 more jackpots being hit in one year (and 2 more jackpots than the year before that) spelled the end for Powerball and justified the changes then all I can do is quote Lyndon Johnson who said:

I may not know much but I know the difference between chicken salad and chicken sh*t.

Jim

Comment #23

Todd — Mon, 17 Apr 2006 17:52:30 GMT

Gee, I'd certainly call it a phenomina when it has the entire industry talking about whether Powerball has jumped the shark. You might not think it's a big deal, because it's not your job to make sure the lottery brings in more profits this year. You can say whoopee sh*t all you want, but that doesn't make you an expert on these things.

Comment #22

Uncle Jim — Mon, 17 Apr 2006 17:23:44 GMT

Todd,

I really have to take exception with you characterizing what happened last year with Powerball as a phenomena. I looked at the Powerball website and the reality is this:

In the calandar year of 2005 the jackpot was hit 14 times. (NOTE: That is calandar year and not Powerball fiscal year.)

In the calandar year of 2004 the jackpot was hit 11 times.

In the calandar year of 2003 the jackpot was hit 12 times.

(And please note that due to split jackpots the actual number of winn... [ More ]

Comment #21

CASH Only — Mon, 17 Apr 2006 17:10:42 GMT

Nobody wants to win over $100 million and take annuity. The record for the largest US jackpot paid as an annuity was just over $110 million, set in 1993, more than four years before the Powerball cash option began.

Comment #20

UmBrook — Mon, 17 Apr 2006 15:08:57 GMT

It is good piece of foresight on your behalf to draw up a Lotto Agreement, however my concern is how legally binding your agreement is. Unless you had a lawyer draft the document for you ensuring all the legal I's were dotted and those who signed this document had legal counsel before signing the document , a disgruntled past-particpant with a savvy lawyer could very possibly render your Lotto Agreement non-binding.

Large sums of money make otherwise rational people do unrational things... [ More ]

Comment #19

Todd — Mon, 17 Apr 2006 00:43:56 GMT

Last year lots of the jackpots that were hit were very small. You remember that phenomena? People were scratching their heads wondering if Powerball had finally hit the wall, because it seemed to get hit so often.

As I described above, when the jackpots get really big, the number of pool players grows exponentionally. And the jackpots have been getting huge as of late. In fact, I ran a news story stating how this was the first back-to-back $200+ million jackpot.

People play Powerball t... [ More ]

Comment #18

Uncle Jim — Mon, 17 Apr 2006 00:32:38 GMT

@Todd:

I read what you post about winners and I appreciate your efforts very much. But with regard to Powerball jackpot winners I'm wondering if there is a new trend developing. If I read the infomation on the Powerball site correctly...since the matrix change 3 of the last 5 winners have been pools. (I think the West/Cheney family can be considered a pool because they were 2 families playing together. According to press reports they spent $40 which from my experience is an amount that is... [ More ]

Comment #17

PrisonerSix — Sat, 15 Apr 2006 14:06:50 GMT

Nobody in my group is either, thank goodness. We all agreed ahead of time that we'd split everything evenly. We have won a couple of small prizes, which we simply put towards the next payment in the pool. I think my pool is a bargain. For $4/payday(every other Friday), we each get 3 chances at both Powerball and Lotto for 4 drawings, with winnings to be split 6 ways. If another person joins, we'll simply add another ticket to the mix.

PrisonerSix

Comment #16

SassyOhio — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 22:03:35 GMT

I just look at it this way..... I am not a greedy person and as I said before my agreement is AIR TIGHT and CLEAR of the rules and each players oppertunities and what they must to to be a part of the CASH. Before I started my pool I was spending 40.00 a draw and with the pool we get 30 numbers compared to 40.00 and only 5.00 out of my pocket still getting the extra 10 numbers I am stil saving over 50% of what I was spending and As back to I am not greedy in any way. The people that I play with o... [ More ]

Comment #15

spy153 — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 21:38:18 GMT

well, there was a prayer answered for the children. who am I to question GOD'S way of working? I just hope some of these workers have seen enough to help some of the kids thrown out by their parents and left to fend for themselves.

Comment #14

RJOh — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 21:11:29 GMT

Lottery pools are a way for players who want more chances to win than they are willing to pay for or can afford and they work fine until a large sum of money is won and those players who want to share the winnings but weren't willing or couldn't afford to pay before the drawing come forward. They are the players who only want to be in the pool when it wins.

Comment #13

golotto — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 20:37:42 GMT

Sincere Congratulations ...to the employees who won

Pools are nice and we've witnessed several pools pay off, but overall, I'd rather buy my tickets alone. Eleven contributing a total of $55 plus two adding another $5; the other recent pool win played $40 at the record jackpot level.

So at that unique moment when the jackpot reaches a specific level, such as a record level, any one of us can adequately 'compete' individually with the typical pool.

As mentioned previously, and lookin... [ More ]

Comment #12

LottoGroups — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 19:35:18 GMT

Congratulations to the group. Another smart group of people who know how to overcome the overwhelming odds and still end up with a life-changing amount of money.

Comment #11

LOTTOMIKE — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 16:36:44 GMT

hopefully another lawsuit doesn't arise because someone got left out...

Comment #10

DoubleDown — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 15:43:53 GMT

Very savvy..sounds like you got it together, Sassy.

Most pools are done at the spur of the moment when the jackpots are large, so having your ducks in a row is not the top priority.

I hope they don't encounter any difficulties, and judging by most of their ages, this is certainly a blessing for them at a good time in their lives.

Congrats to them !

DD

Comment #9

SassyOhio — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 14:52:16 GMT

That is why I do the Lotto Agreement and With each of my pool's I give new ones each day of the drawing and they are dated and stated onlu good for that days drawing and I list each player in the pool and they get copies of the numbers and I state in the pool agreement that PAST PARTICIPATION DOES NOT ALLOW TO ANY WINNINGS. IF YOU DID NOT ENTER THE DRAWING OF THE WINNING LOTTO YOU ARENT ENTITLED. And I tell them in every agreement the days that the drawings are on and the amount that we play and... [ More ]

Comment #8

winner2b — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 14:08:17 GMT

Congrats to them. MO is a great state. Tonight's my Night i Feel it in ma' timbers.

Comment #7

Todd — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 14:05:07 GMT

I post these news stories, so I have a good feel for what kind of winners are out there. Most of the winners, by far, are solo players/winners. (A couple claiming a prize is still a solo winner.) You see an increase in pool winners for these big jackpots because the number of pools greatly increases when the jackpots get big. But they are still the minority of winners.

Comment #6

Uncle Jim — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 14:04:34 GMT

Another group win. I'm with Diva on this one. Given the way the game is structured and all the groups buying tickets I have to wonder if an individual player can win.

Jim

Comment #5

dvdiva — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 13:24:21 GMT

With all the group wins I'm wondering how many just by tickets for themselves anymore.

Comment #4

tweetietoo — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 13:21:54 GMT

Yep that will happen

Comment #3

DoubleDown — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 13:04:24 GMT

A Quick pick yet again......

Dam those systems : full speed ahead with the computer picks !

BTW, anyone want to bet how long it will take before someone steps up and says that they were in the pool but were absent the day of the ticket purchase

Comment #2

SassyOhio — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 12:17:01 GMT

Congrats Winners!! I can only imagine the feelings that your all feeling right now and hope that someday I will know that shock I just hope that the local town has a back up plan for your positions! ITs not just packaging meat ya know. There are children and familys that are depending on them for their next meal! So I guess if anyone is looking for a state job with state benefits they know where to go LOL. But tonight there is another oppertunity for yet another Lotto Pool Group to endure t... [ More ]

Comment #1

SassysBaibeee — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 12:05:15 GMT

Well that's a good way to start off the weekend! lol

Congrats to the winners! And good luck to everyone on the MM tonight! And PB tomorrow night!! And if one of our dear friends here on lottery post hits it, Don't forget to remember SASSARI!!!! lol

Kiss Kiss

13 State Employees to Share $224 Million Powerball Lottery Jackpot

Lottery Post — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 10:44:53 GMT

A group of 13 Missouri state employees, who work for the Department of Social Services Family Support Division/Child Support Enforcement in Florissant, claimed the $224.2 million Powerball jackpot from the April 12 drawing.

The jackpot is the largest prize ever won in the Missouri Lottery's 20-year history and the seventh largest Powerball jackpot ever awarded in the nation.

The winners are: Cornelia Aversa, 61, of Ballwin; Juanita Miller, 57, of Black Jack; Madeleine Knox, 68, James Wydrz... [ More ]