You want to win that $1.6 billion Mega Millions jackpot on Tuesday night (the one that’s $904 million, if you take the lump sum option)?
If so, follow the numbers.
Based on the past you should pick your five from these seven: 31, 49, 41, 29, 28, 17 and 2.
Those came up the most often, according to a MarketWatch review of previous winning numbers.
We looked at the data since October 2013, when the lottery moved towards the modern format. (One caveat: Last year the game moved from 75 possible numbers to 70).
But you’ll have to choose your own PowerBall — more on this below.
Actually, we have no idea what numbers are going to come up tonight, anymore than your financial adviser knows what the stock market is really going to do next year or the year after that.
All we’ve got is the past, and the wild idea that the future might look like it.
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Mega Millions drawings are random. (Stock market returns may or not be somewhat random.) Those playing must pick five numbers between 1 and 70, plus one MegaBall number between 1 and 25.
You can just let the machine pick the numbers for you randomly, which sometimes works. Or you can play some numbers that have some personal meaning to you, or which came to you in a vision, or whatever.
We went back and looked at what numbers came up most often. Why not? Wall Street is always doing that, even while telling you past performance is no guarantee of the future.
We’ve left out the MegaBall because last year they changed the possible numbers from 15 to 25. That’s such a big change that it renders previous data meaningless (even assuming past data has any meaning anyway). So you’re on your own for that choice.
Naturally, if these numbers don’t come up, don’t hold this writer responsible. Let’s face it, you wouldn’t hand over the money if you won. If you do win, tell your spouse. It could cost you dearly, otherwise.
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