Joan R. Ginther

Joan R. Ginther was an American lottery winner. On four occasions between 1993 and 2010, she collected winnings in excess of US$2 million in state lotteries, to a grand total of US$20.4 million.

Description

Joan Ginther was an American four-time lottery winner. She first won the lottery in 1993, when she won $5.4 million in Lotto Texas (equivalent to about $11.8M in 2024). Her next win came in 2006 when she won $2 million in the Holiday Millionaire scratch-off. Her third win happened in 2008, when she won $3 million from a Millions and Millions ticket. In 2010, she won $10 million, her largest prize, bringing her total winnings to $20.4 million. ^[1] According to mathematicians asked by the Associated Press, the odds of winning this many times were one in 18 times 10 to the power 24, ^[2] but this was apparently a miscalculation. ^[3] All of her winning tickets were purchased in Texas, and two of them were bought from the same convenience store in Bishop, Texas. ^[4] Prior to her death she lived in Las Vegas, Nevada and preferred to keep a low profile. ^[5]

Ginther died on April 12, 2024. ^[6]

See also

• Lotteries in the United States

References

1. "Texas Woman Wins Lottery for Fourth Time". ABC News. 7 July 2010. Retrieved 22 October 2018.
2. Nathaniel Rich (Aug 2011). "The Luckiest Woman on Earth". Harper's .
3. If, for example, she bought 4000 lottery tickets over the years and had a chance of winning of one in ten million each time, then the probability of her winning four times would be ${\displaystyle {\frac {4000\times 3999\times 3998\times 3997}{4!}}\times {\frac {0.9999999^{3996}}{10000000^{4}}}\approx 10^{-15}.}$ Other scenarios might give a higher probability.
4. "Texan may be world's luckiest lottery winner". NBC News . 7 July 2010. Retrieved 22 October 2018.
5. "Three-time winner hits lotto jackpot again". mysanantonio.com. 13 July 2010. Retrieved 22 October 2018.
6. "Obituary".