Mega Millions mania jazzes ticket sales

So much suspense -- and such a humongous jackpot -- had built up in the 42 states participating in Friday night's Mega Millions drawing that Nevada convenience stores were dispensing lottery tickets to customers like pancakes to hungry lumberjacks.

Clerks said Missouri Scratchers tickets are usually much more popular than the multi-state Mega Millions or Powerball games, but that changed when 18 Mega Millions drawings had failed to produce a winner since January and the pot boiled over to $640 million-plus.

"We've sold $302 in Mega Millions tickets since 5 a.m., which is way more than normal," said Fastrip clerk Kyla Silva at 402 W. Austin Blvd. early Friday afternoon. "We usually sell $20 to $30 or less.

"People have been buying $20, $50 and $100 worth."

Samantha Coy reported $192 in sales at the 1811 N. Ash St. Fastrip since 6 a.m., adding that $20 to $25 is typical. "People have been saying it's amazing that the jackpot is so high," Coy said.

"They say they will be the one who gets the money, but if not it's worth the shot. You can't win unless you play."

Coy plays Mega Millions and Powerball "once in a while" and Scratchers more often because there is a better sense of play with having to scratch them to see if she wins or loses. "I pick my own numbers for Mega Millions and Powerball," she said.

"Most people just let the computer pick them."

Cash N' Dash clerk John Bryant's 1518 E. Austin store had sold about $250 in Mega Millions chances since daybreak Friday. "Most buy $3 to $5 worth," Bryant said.

"They talk about how big it is and wonder what their share is going to be. Some are optimistic that they have that slim chance. I don't play very often. I don't play the scratch-offs much, either, but a lot of people do. They'll hit a good spot in a book sometimes and come back and try to win more, but I don't think that's a smart deal.

"If you hit a $100 winner, you might as well get off that book and forget it for a while. It depends on the luck of the draw."

Kati Burr of the 401 N. Osage Blvd. Cash N' Dash said $597 in Mega Millions tickets had been purchased since 6 a.m. by customers spending $2 to $5. "I had one who bought $100 worth," Burr said.

"We usually sell about $50 in Mega Millions tickets by now, so it's normally not very popular. We usually sell more Scratchers, but today it's more lottery. At least every other person is getting one. They're saying, 'That's really high.'

"One customer will be talking about it and the next customer will say, 'Hey, I want one of those.' It has been in the news a lot, so that's drawing more people's attention to it."

Burr sometimes buys Scratchers but few lottery tickets. "There are too many chances to lose, I think," she said.

So what's the chance of winning Mega Millions? About 176 million to one, according to Bloomberg Business Week. "The jackpot has been growing since an Atlanta woman won $72 million Jan. 24, which is a strangely long dry spell," the Internet magazine said Friday.

"People are snapping up an average of 14 million tickets an hour.

At $1 apiece, there's not much to lose unless you buy in bulk like the Washington Wizards Chris Singleton, who says he is buying $10,000 worth of tickets."