Quote:
Originally Posted by WildBobAA
Kind of a noob here, is the powerplay thing a no-brainer?
It is a no-brainer to avoid purchasing the power play. The power play doesn't even affect the Jackpot, only the smaller payouts and you absolutely shouldn't be playing the lottery for the smaller payouts.
Just look at the payout table. As an example, if you buy a $2 ticket and match only the power ball you get $4 back. Thus you would need 1 in 2 odds for this to be a neutral investment (ignoring all other prize levels). With the power play option, you would spend $3, and get $12 back. So now, you only need 1 in 4 odds for this to be a neutral investment. That sounds great until you realize that your odds of hitting the powerball (and nothing else) are 1 in 55.41 (odds of winning any prize are 1 in 31.85). I would just say play for the jackpot and if you win something else that's gravy on top.