Lottery jackpots become bigger; here's why

If it seems that the lines have lengthened with each draw or that the jackpots have exploded in growth recently, that 's because they' ve done it.

As the next Mega Millions approaches in two days (Tuesday at 11 pm ET), here's a look at the numbers.

Why have the jackpots become so big?

It was all by design.

Lottery officials began tinkering with probabilities in 2015 to reduce the chances of winning a jackpot, which increased the possibility for the highest prices to reach exorbitant levels. As the money reaches these high numbers, a growing number of skeptics and novice players are thrown into action.

Powerball was the first to try the new formula by changing the potential number of combinations three years ago. This change has reduced the chances of winning from one in 175 to one out of 292 million.

Mega Millions, which has existed since 1996, followed suit with a similar initiative in October 2017, raising the probability of one out of 259 million to one out of 302 million. Mega Millions also doubled the price of the entry ticket from $ 1 to $ 2 and recorded three of the six largest payments since the changes.

As the size of the pot increases, people buy more tickets. The process continues twice a week until one or more people guess the winning combination.

"I'm surprised no one has honestly won the last round," said Chris O'Byrne, professor of management information at San Diego State University, referring to Friday's draw.

"More than 800 million tickets have been purchased to generate more than $ 1.6 billion – it's quite shocking to note that no one has the exact combination."

O & # 39; Byrne said that he thought Tuesday's draw would almost certainly give one or more winners.

How can I increase my chances of winning?

You can buy a ticket with any six-digit combination. That's to say if you can afford it.

"If you wanted to ensure a win, it would cost you about $ 600 million," said O. Byrne. "Even if you win, you might have to split the winnings with someone else who will guess the right numbers. So, good luck for that.

Does that mean I should not play?

It depends on what you play, said O & # 39; Byrne. "You have a better chance of throwing a coin and throwing it 28 times in a row over heads rather than winning."

But if you pull something – even if it's only a fantasy – it might be reason enough to join these long lines.

"I invested $ 2 in the ability to dream of how I would spend my money until Tuesday night – it's a reasonable price to pay for that," said O. Byrne. "In addition, the potential return on your $ 2 at this point is better than when the lottery started at $ 40 million, so that's it."