Tania Dall / Eyewitness News
Email: tdall@wwltv.com | Twitter: @taniadall
NEW ORLEANS -- Lotto players across the New Orleans metro area hoped to win big Wednesday, as the Powerball jackpot climbed to $320 million.
The winning numbers were: 56, 27, 46, 6, 51, Powerball: 21
The Louisiana Lottery Corporation says that Powerball jackpot is the fourth highest in the jackpot's history.
When the lotto jackpot inches closer to a billion dollars veteran and newbie lotto players come out of the woodwork. The Kwick Mart on Prytania saw a lot of that foot traffic on Wednesday.
We asked lottery ticket buyer Jonathan Emerson what he'd do with so much money.
"I don't know. I have big plans for all family and friends living in a giant compound with no worries," said Emerson.
However, customers like John Schaff know that the odds aren't in his favor.
"I don't know what I'd do. I haven't really thought that far because I don't think I'm going to win so it doesn't really matter," said Schaff.
Tulane University's Associate Professor of Mathematics Michelle Lacey says the likelihood of anyone winning is 1 in 175-million people.
With the population of the United States now at 314 million, Lacey had this statistical break-down:
"So I thought about what it would amount to if every single person, man, woman and child in the country were to buy a power ball ticket what would happened. It would be expected that one or two of them would win and there is a 20 percent chance that none of them would win," said Lacey.
If you plan on stocking up on future tickets, here are some words of wisdom from a numbers expert.
"If people go into it and expect to have fun then there certainly is no harm done. But buying 3 or 4 tickets when the odds are 1 out of 175 million isn't going to increase your chances too much," added Lacey.
Lottery officials say the last time we had a Powerball jackpot winner in Louisiana was back in July of 2010.
