Talk:Lotto 6/49

I think Lotto 6/49 has been going in Germany for 50 years and was invented there. This should be the main theme of a Lotto 6/49 entry.

See:

http://www.spiegel.de/panorama/0,1518,378904,00.html

Was it actually called Lotto 6/49? If so then perhaps a Lotto 6/49 (Germany) article can be created. 23skidoo 01:57, 13 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Slight error in reported odds

Hi - I have written most of the Lottery Math article, and, though not really important, there's a slight error in this article's reported odds for 5 balls (and no bonus ball). You say that it's 1 in 55,492 - but I have calculated it as 166474/3 = 55491.3333 recurring (see bonus ball section), which rounds to 1 in 55,491. I am confident I am right about this, because I have calculated all outcomes for this lottery as fractions, and they add up to 1 exactly (as they should). --New Thought 00:30, 11 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

A very reasonable explanation for this has been given here.--New Thought 15:58, 11 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Prize Pool?

How does it make sense that you win 9% of the pool with 4/6 #'s but only 4.75% with 5/6 #'s... Is this to suggest you win more money if less numbers hit? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.55.142.23 (talk) 04:46, 24 November 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I agree, if anyone knows the answer, please share. Why would getting 4 numbers be better than getting 5? 69.156.37.253 (talk) 02:37, 17 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Simple - the pool reflects the total prize money for all winners in that category. There are fewer people that get 5/6 numbers, so sharing the pool of 4.75% results in a larger payout per winner than sharing the pool for the 4/6 winners. For example, in the latest Lotto 6/49 (16-Jan-2008), there were 258 winners with 5/6 numbers, each getting $1,939.50 (total pool is $500,391.00, 4.75% of all winnings for that drawing), whereas 12626 winners had 4/6 numbers, each getting $75.10 (total pool is $948,212.60, 9% of all winnings for that drawing). Mindmatrix 15:22, 17 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Ahh! Excellent, I had not thought about it that way! Thank you very much for this clarification! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 199.202.95.19 (talk) 18:20, 21 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Was slightly confused, as for example, if you hit 3/6 numbers the "win" is $10. now obviously this does not imply that the entire prize pool for 3/6 is $10, but rather each person who hits 3/6 gets $10. Therefore, I had assumed that the same premise held true of 4/6 and 5/6, respectively. Thanks again! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 199.202.95.19 (talk) 18:25, 21 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Critical Evaluation

Why is the term 'social conservative' applied to the Lotto 6/49 as a form of gambling with out any support for the use of the term? Where does the evidence for social conservatives view of gambling come from?Schoeppe (talk) 06:02, 17 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Minimum Jackpot

Last Wednesday (May 21, 2008), the jackpot was $3,010,652. The article says that the jackpot prize is of at least $3,500,000. Obviously, that is incorrect. So, what is the minimum jackpot? The article should be corrected but I don't know what the minimum is. [[Special:Contributions/76.65.71.14

I don't know, but this may explain it somewhat. Perhaps the advertised value is the total pot available to be won, instead of just the grand prize. Mindmatrix 14:28, 24 May 2008 (UTC)|76.65.71.14]] (talk) 00:58, 24 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Accuracy of odds

I've reverted an edit which changed the accuracy of the odds of winning; while correct, it did introduce a subtle usability issue. First, all of the numbers in the table should have the same accuracy, for consistency. This is because readers may not detect the difference between a comman and period, and may be confused by what appears to be decreasing odds for fewer numbers. Second, there's no real advantage to it. However, if you'd like greater accuracy, please limit it to one decimal place - anything more is superfluous. Mindmatrix 23:20, 17 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]