What are the odds?

A man scratching his head. A question mark hangs over him.

Generally, the odds of winning a draw-based lottery depend on two things:
1. How many numbers must be matched
2. The size of the number pool.

For example, when playing PICK-4, the odds of winning the jackpot are based on matching 4 numbers out of a pool of 10 numbers. The more numbers you must match and the bigger the number pool, the greater your odds.

Odds of winning by game

Odds for individual Daily Lottery games vary depending on each game’s prize structure, the betting structure (if applicable), the player pool and the numbers you select.

DAILY KENO

Jackpot:
$2,500,000

Odds of winning the jackpot:
1 in 2,147,181

Matching numbers required to win the jackpot:
10/20 on a $10 bet

Number pool:
70

PICK-4

Jackpot:
$5,000

Odds of winning the jackpot:
1 in 10,000

Matching numbers required to win the jackpot:
4/4 in the order they’re drawn (Straight Play)

Number pool:
0000-9999

PICK-3

Jackpot:
Total prize pool divided by the number of winners

Odds of winning the jackpot:
1 in 1,000

Matching numbers required to win the jackpot:
Three identical digits (e.g. 444)

Number pool:
000-999

PICK-2

Jackpot:
$99

Odds of winning the jackpot:
1 in 100

Matching numbers required to win the jackpot:
2

Number pool:
00-99

How are Daily Lottery numbers drawn?

Daily Lottery numbers are chosen at random by a ball drop. The ball drop machine creates a random result for every draw, and lottery balls are tested regularly for consistency in size and weight to keep it that way. This ensures that every number has an equal chance of being drawn with every draw.

The ball drop machine is loaded with one set of balls numbered from 0 to 9.
Once a ball is dropped and the first winning number is recorded, the machine is reloaded with all the balls and another drop takes place to determine the next winning number.
The number of separate ball drops that takes place depends on which game you are playing. For example, DAILY KENO draws 20 winning numbers. That means that 20 separate balls drops will be performed.

Tip

There’s no advantage to picking numbers that have won more often in the past. The chances of winning are always the same, no matter how many times a number has won before.

There is no way to change the odds or the rules for any daily lottery game. The ball drop mechanism ensures that draw results are completely random. There is no way to tell which numbers will be drawn at any given time.

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