Chasing a Dream

We all have dreams. Some of us have dreams of becoming rich and successful, while other may have dreams of fame and glory. Many of us just want a better life for our families and loved ones. Some of the most successful people in the world were the biggest dreamers. Our great country was built on a dream. Our forefathers had a dream of a land where we could seek our unalienable rights of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

Chasing a dream is nothing more than setting a goal and doing whatever is necessary to achieve the desired results. There is nothing wrong with chasing a dream, but you must have a realistic perspective on the chances of fulfilling your dream. My childhood dream of walking on the moon is simply unattainable. The odds of this happening are zero; however the odds of winning a million dollars or more are slim but still attainable.

Many of us who like to gamble for entertainment have the dream of winning a few million dollars. There are two ways to try to win a multi-million dollar jackpot. You can play the lottery or play a progressive slot machine at the casino.

MegaBucks vs. SuperLOTTO Plus

We all know that any form of gambling is based on the odds of an event occurring and the money we are paid when we win. If our dream is winning the big one, we need to fully understand the odds of it happening. Some games give us better odds of winning than others.

Let's compare the California SuperLOTTO Plus game to the progressive MegaBucks. The odds of hitting the jackpot on the MegaBucks machine are about one in 50 million. The odds of hitting the top prize in the SuperLOTTO are one in 41.4 million. At first glance you see that the "odds" are slightly better to hit the lottery than the slot jackpot but that does not tell the full story.

The overall return of the games is based on the top jackpot along with all the smaller amounts that can be won while playing. The overall return on the MegaBucks slot machine is between 85-90 percent. IGT does not give the exact percentage of the game in California so we will use the high end of 90 percent. So the theoretical is 10 cents for every dollar you gamble.

Now compare this with the California lottery which has an over all return of 53.9 percent. (Figures posted on their website.) This makes your theoretical loss about 46 cents for each dollar wagered. If you want to chase your dream of winning a million dollar prize you are better off with the MegaBucks game.

Strategy for Playing

Chasing your dream of becoming a millionaire by winning the progressive jackpot at the casino can quickly deplete your gambling bankroll. If you want to go for a life-changing jackpot, you should only risk a small percentage of your gambling money playing the games. Here is a plan that I like to use that limits the amount of money I am risking on the big progressive games. I decided that I would play one spin a day on the MegaBucks machine in my attempt to win the million-dollar jackpot.

One spin will cost three dollars so to play for a year it will cost me $3 x 365 day, which equals $1,095. Now if the return on MegaBucks is 90 percent, my theoretical loss of playing is $109.50. Of course, this is only 365 spins of the machine so anything could happen. I could lose the whole amount or I could get lucky and win the big one or some of the lesser amounts on the pay table.

I do not visit the casino every day and it would be unrealistic to drive to the casino every day to play one spin on the machine. (The price of gas these days would really make this a losing bet.) My playing strategy is to set aside my daily "progressive bankroll" and then play the number of spins from my last visit. For example, if I visit the casino once a month I will take 30 spins on the machine. I put $90 in the bill receptor and then spin 30 times and cash out the credits I have left on the machine. By doing this I am taking advantage of any smaller wins and hopefully will not lose the entire $1,095 yearly bankroll.

You may decide that risking three dollars a day is within your means and decide to use a "go for broke" strategy for your money. If this is what you chose to do, you can play off any credits that you win from your daily spins.

They say not to put all your eggs in one basket and you should not spend all of your gambling bankroll chasing a progressive jackpot. Keep in mind that the odds of hitting MegaBucks are 50 million to one, while the odds of getting stuck by lightning in any given year are 400,000 to one.

Good Luck!

Until Next time remember:
Luck comes and goes.....Knowledge Stays Forever.