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What do these people—George Martinek, Susan Hannoun, Lori Boyle, Bernadette Gietka, Neal Wanless, and Bob Guerzon—have in common? Answer: They are all lottery millionaires. They, along with thousands of others each year, defy the odds and win the lottery jackpot. We hear about jackpot winners every week in the news. But have you ever considered how many new millionaires the lottery creates each year? How many people earn at least a million dollars?
According to the TLC television show, “The Lottery Changed My Life,” more than 1,600 new lottery millionaires are created each year. That doesn’t include people who have won jackpots of, say, $100,000 because the number would be much higher. Still, 1600 is a pretty high number.
If 1600 win at least a million in the lottery every year, it means that there are more than 130 every month, more than 30 every week and more than 4 every day. There are many winners.
Perhaps you are inspired by these numbers. You may think that since there are so many big lottery winners, one day your time will come. I don’t mean to spoil the party, but maybe you should think again. The odds of winning a million dollar jackpot are bad. 1,600 annual jackpot winners isn’t that big a number when you consider how many people actually play. Hundreds of millions of people buy billions of lottery tickets each year and only a small fraction of those people actually win a big prize.
However, don’t be discouraged. The lottery is a random game of luck and you may one day get lucky and become a new lottery millionaire. Good luck!