How random are Powerball quick picks?

I bought three Powerball quick pick tickets today and I thought the distribution of the numbers I received was strange. It made me wonder if the Powerball quick pick tickets are truly random?

Remember: 3 tickets.

The number 21 showed up on all 3 tickets.
The number 37 showed up on two of the tickets.
The number 45 showed up on two of the tickets.

On three tickets, not counting the Powerball number, there are 15 possible different numbers. But on my three tickets there are only 12 different numbers.

Two tickets both have 21 and 37.
Two tickets both have 21 and 45.

Two tickets both have only one "birthday number" -- meaning a number under 32.

I think there are a lot of "repeaters" for only three tickets.

You know Mr. Mendelson, human beings are great at pattern recognition, but would make terrible random number generators.

Suppose I said to you: Alan, if you buy a powerball ticket with 6 "Quick Picks", how likely is that you have a (red) Powerball number that's a duplicate? You'd probably say, oh the chances must be very small. 26 (red) Powerballs to choose from and I pick only 6.

But in fact, the odds are almost 50/50 that you'll have a repeater (red) Powerball on that ticket.

But... I'm not talking about the 26 Powerball numbers. I'm talking about the 69 basic numbers, and with 69 possibilities look at the number of repeaters on only three tickets.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by nerakil

You know Mr. Mendelson, human beings are great at pattern recognition, but would make terrible random number generators.

Suppose I said to you: Alan, if you buy a powerball ticket with 6 "Quick Picks", how likely is that you have a (red) Powerball number that's a duplicate? You'd probably say, oh the chances must be very small. 26 (red) Powerballs to choose from and I pick only 6.

But in fact, the odds are almost 50/50 that you'll have a repeater (red) Powerball on that ticket.

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Yes, those repeaters are a longshot for sure, Alan. Too bad, because now you've used up all your lightning strike luck and you won't win anything on tonight's drawing.

EDIT: I should protect my own ticket purchases here with the disclaimer saying I wasn't projecting when I said that to Alan.

Random numbers does not mean different numbers. This is why some if you fail to understand gambling odds and math.

Some of* (to fix a Swype error)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jbjb

Random numbers does not mean different numbers. This is why some if you fail to understand gambling odds and math.

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There are 69 possible numbers. I'd feel more confident if my three tickets with 15 possible numbers didn't have so many repeaters. Sometimes you have to put theory aside and examine what really happened.

Winning Numbers for the historic $1.586 billion draw

The Powerball winning numbers for Wednesday, Jan. 13 are: 4, 8, 19, 27, and 34, with Powerball number 10

Boxing the first 34 numbers with all 26 powerball numbers would have been

7234656 combinations, or a $14.4 million investment, but no one has the time to legitimately buy those. Has to be a winner tonight with all these low numbers.

Jackpot busted now. At least 1 winner in California. Chino Hills east of LA. Was it you, Alan?

Not me. Not even close -- geographically or with my numbers. On my tickets only ONE birthday number -- a number under 32.

Crazy huge crowds gathering around the Chino Hills 7-Eleven where the winning ticket was sold:

https://www.instagram.com/explore/locations/3559974/

12 tickets matched 5 out of 5 white 1-69 numbers in California

Tennessee and Florida have jackpot winners.

I know that 7-11. I took the 71 sometimes when I used to go to Rincon.

Results are final

81 tickets got 5/5 whiteballs
3 tickets got jackpot

I didn't want all that money -- too many problems. Another $20,000 royal will suit me just fine.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Alan Mendelson

I didn't want all that money -- too many problems. Another $20,000 royal will suit me just fine.

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Any idea why the Forbes 400 would want to hang onto the assets they control if it entails too many problems? Each of the three lucky winners will receive approximately $175 million in a lump sum after taxes (give or take depending on state taxes). This is only 10 percent of the absolute minimum requirement to reach the very bottom of the Forbes 400 list. That requirement is currently $1.7 billion.

In other words, the lucky three winners would have to multiply their entire jackpot by 10 times just to make the bottom rung of the list.

There are 165 billionaires in the US that didn't even make the list!

They'll have to console themselves with JUST being in the 1%, of all humans, EVER.

I have had an interesting life. I grew up rich -- and poor. My father was a businessman and an attorney. I've talked about how he was also a mob lawyer.

I watched my father lose everything. I had to work my way through college.

At one time my parents had an estate with a mansion with an indoor swimming pool and an indoor tennis court on 20+ acres with 17 bathrooms. We counted the bathrooms because we couldn't count all of the bedrooms. They had another house which today is the home of the Iranian ambassador to the UN. When my father lost everything my parents were left to live in a hotel -- and their friends couldn't believe it so the gossip in town was that my father bought the hotel.

My point is -- I only wish my father never struggled with money and struggled for money and instead had been home with us more. I regret my dad was always at the office. I never had to be rich.