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The Journal's article unfolds the tale of an individual who bought tens of thousands of tickets for the largest ever ‘Must be Won’ Lotto draw in Ireland, held in January 2022.

When Risk Meets the Numbers

Ireland has always loved a good Lotto story. Back in January 2022, headlines blazed with news of a daring player who bought an extraordinary 45,000 tickets for the country’s largest ever “Must Be Won” Lotto draw. That gamble cost €180,000 but resulted in €425,813 in winnings. The regulator even reviewed the case to ensure there was no fraud — it was simply a dramatic example of how far some will go to jig with the odds.

The math was striking. With 6 numbers drawn from 47, there are 10,737,573 possible combinations. Buying one ticket gives you odds of about 1 in 10.7 million. Buying 45,000 unique tickets cuts the odds to about 1 in 238 — still slim, but a leap big enough to spark nationwide conversation.