Quick Picks or Your Own Powerball Numbers for $550 Million Draw?
The Powerball jackpot has hit $550 million for Saturday’s draw, following a run of 20 games without a top prize winner. As more Americans than usual flock to the lottery terminals in hope of ending the traditional post-Christmas comedown in style, and players across the globe take part online in huge numbers, will you use Quick Picks or your own Powerball numbers for this weekend’s huge event?
Choosing Your Own Powerball Numbers
Many Powerball players like to choose their own numbers, often because they are considered lucky or they have some personal significance. The advantage to this is that you can instantly recognise whether you are due a prize when you see the winning Powerball numbers from a specific draw, even if you don’t have your ticket to hand. Every year, many lottery prizes around the world go unclaimed due to people losing tickets or simply forgetting to check their entries.
If you notice that some or all of your numbers have come up in the Powerball results, you are more likely to dig out your ticket and contact your state lottery to claim the prize. If you played a random selection, you may not remember your lines and fail to notice a win after glancing at the results. However, it is important that you look up your lines after every draw, and the Powerball Ticket Checker is a quick and easy way of finding out how your numbers have performed.
The downside to player picks is that you can find yourself falling into popular patterns (multiples of ‘lucky’ numbers like 7, for example), which would make it more likely you will have to share your jackpot with other people. In addition, choosing family birthdays restricts the number range you can pick from to 31 at the most, meaning you cannot win the jackpot if balls bearing 32 and higher are drawn.
Powerball Quick Picks
Quick Picks, sometimes called Computer Picks, eliminate this issue, ensuring you play a spread of random numbers and making it more likely that your line will be unique. Simply mark the option on your playslip, whether it is in store or online, or ask the retailer for a Quick Pick when you play Powerball.
Another advantage to playing different selections of random numbers is that you don’t feel compelled to enter each time. If you have a regular set of Powerball lines, you would be distraught if they came up and you had not bought a ticket for that draw.
Which is the Most Successful Way to Play Powerball?
Official figures suggest that between 70 and 80 percent of Powerball entries are Quick Picks and that a similar portion of the prizes are won by Quick Picks. This reflects that every line, however the numbers are chosen, has exactly the same chance of winning a Powerball prize as any other. You can find the Powerball odds of winning at the Powerball Prizes page.
Win the Powerball Jackpot
If you would like a shot at the $550 million jackpot this weekend, whether you use Quick Picks or your own Powerball numbers is completely up to your personal preference. You can play at stores in any of the participating states and jurisdictions, and international players can pick their Powerball numbers online now through the Lotto Tickets page.