People Are Buying So Many Lotto Tickets That Combinations Are Running Out

Update (10/24): We have a winner. Looks like a single ticket holder in South Carolina is taking home the jackpot.

We all know the kind of mood that inspires a lottery ticket purchase: Maybe something happened that morning that made you feel lucky. Maybe you've got a spare $5 and you pass by the ticket counter while buying some Advil. Maybe you've been fantasizing about that super expensive karaoke equipment you've had your eye on. Or maybe, this time around, the chance to win Mega Millions's massive $1.6 billion jackpot is just too hard to pass up.

The latter is happening right now, folks—the Mega Millions has reached what lottery officials are claiming may be the largest lottery jackpot in history, according to Washington Post. Mega Millions officials told the Post that the prize had reached "uncharted territory," and hopeful citizens are reportedly buying up lottery tickets so quickly, number combinations are beginning to run out.

By the time the winning numbers are called Tuesday night at 11 PM, lottery officials told the Post they estimate roughly 75 percent of the 302,575,350 possible number combinations will have been bought. That means that unlike last Friday's Mega Millions drawing, where nobody won, there's a higher likelihood that someone will wind up with the golden ticket. And even if they don't win, they can still press their luck on Wednesday with the $620 million Powerball drawing.

That being said, winning the lottery isn't a one-way highway to bliss. If you do pull a Charlie in the Chocolate Factory, you'll have to put a lot of work into making sure your life isn't ruined by poor financial planning or the unwanted publicity that comes with winning a fortune. Past lottery winners have gone broke or lost friends and family or even been killed over the winnings. Still, if you do beat the odds, we've got a few tips on how not to be an idiot with all that money.

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