The Powerball jackpot has grown into the largest pot of gold ever offered in the history of wild-eyed fantasies, as the lottery’s prize reached $1.4 billion dollars on Monday.
Players across New York and 42 other states flocked to gas stations, delis and bodegas to snatch up tickets for Wednesday’s drawing, pumping the world-record payout higher with every $2 ticket sold. The prize could even climb higher as more tickets are sold.
But while millions are slapping down their bucks for a chance of joining the Forbes rich list, some diehards are refusing to spend one dime on a game where the chance of winning is 292.2 million to 1.
“[The lottery] is for suckers!” declared Sam Elliott, 37, as he passed by a bodega in Park Slope without buying a ticket.
Joanna Lindsay, a health-care aide, would rather feed quarters into a washer.
“I feel there is no point,” she said. “I’d rather keep the money in my pocket. I can do my laundry or put it in the bus.
“I see people play with disability checks — that’s taxpayers’ money!”
Mathematician Curtis Bennett said people should only buy a lottery ticket for fun, not for profit.
“From an entertainment perspective, playing the lottery might have value,” said Bennett, a professor at Loyola Marymount University. “Consider that we happily spend up to $20 on a movie ticket for two hours of entertainment. I assume . . . the joy of fantasizing about winning the lottery is worth the $2 ticket.”
Gloria Wander, 60, of Queens, said she understood exactly that as she bought a ticket.
“I play just to be a part of it,” Wander said.
If a single Powerball winner emerges from New York City, he or she could opt for a one-time after-tax payout of $540.7 million. A lone winner from New York state but outside Gotham could rake in $574.3 million
Additional reporting by David K. Li
Americans wait in line for Powerball tickets: