Washington State Is One Of The WORST For Winning The Lottery

Many Americans believe a path from rags to riches can be walked by playing the lottery.  In 1988 that path expanded from state contained lotteries to the first multi-state game when Lotto America was born.  Lotto America lasted for only four years.  In 1992 it gave way to the granddaddy of the multi-state lotteries...Powerball.  In 1996 Mega Millions would come in to the picture giving even more Americans the hope they could change their fortunes by picking six numbers.

The thing is, the likelihood of you getting struck by lightening is significantly higher than winning one of those jackpots.  It's roughly a 1 in 292.2 million chance to hit the big one in  Powerball and a little worse, 1 in 302 million, chance, to hit the Mega Millions jackpot.  That doesn't stop people from buying tickets and playing however.  Believe it or not, the State you live in may also factor in to your success rate.

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An online casino review site, OnlineCasinosAT, recently reviewed data from previous Powerball winners to calculate the most and least frequent lottery winners, average jackpot totals, and the total to-date prize pools across the US.  I'll get to where Washington State falls in a few, but first I'll share the states that fared the vest and the worst.

The Luckiest State

If you already don't care for California, this isn't going to soften your stance.  Californians have won an incredible $9.13 billion from Powerball making them far and away the luckiest of the 50 when it comes to hitting it big.

The Least Lucky

The Mississippi River may be one of the longest rivers in the US, but resident's luck with the lottery is the shortest.  Mississippi is the state with the lowest average jackpot amount per draw and the fewest winners. Winners take home an average of $1.09 million if they hit the jackpot – which is 84% lower than the national average of $6.69 million.

The Magnolia State has also had just two Powerball jackpot winner and between them they've won just over $2 million.  The average amount of Powerball players in each state is 344.  Factoring that in Mississippi has is 99% less likely to have a jackpot winner than anywhere else.  Breathe a sigh of relief you don't live there.

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Washington State Doesn't Fare Much Better

The Evergreen State is in the top ten for least lucky when it comes to cashing in big.  While Washingtonians have taken home an impressive $16.78 million per win when playing the Powerball, only 58 players have won since 1992.  That translates to being 83% less likely to win than the national average, good for the seventh worst odds in the US.

If you want to continue trying your luck with winning a the lottery you can take comfort in this unique nugget of Washington State luck.  Despite the small number of winners, the state has the third-highest jackpot amount in the country – 151% larger than average. To date, players have won $973 million playing the Powerball.  Your chance of winning may not be great, but if you hit, the odds of hitting big may be on your side.