[roberthahn]

You're not missing anything. It is technically possible to design and build a business focused solely on buying lottery tickets for profit (i.e.: buy enough to ensure good enough odds to win) But there are a number of risks. The list below isn't exhaustive:

  * sharing the winning number with someone else
  * do you buy every single ticket or enough to "virtually guarantee" a win? (and the fewer tickets you buy, the more risky it becomes)
  * the logistics of purchasing that many tickets

I have even read stories of people trying this before - but haven't been able to find the link. The story I remember best is one man hiring a bunch of people to buy lottery tickets on his behalf.

Anyway. I'd love to see someone make a go of doing this "professionally", but when you have 172 million or more, the incentive isn't really there anymore.

[mquan]

You also have to pay tax on your winning.

[bryanlarsen]

If you bought tickets systematically with a reasonable expectation of making a profit, then the tickets should be tax-deductible as an expense.

Normally lottery tickets aren't tax deductible because of the 'reasonable expectation' test.

[prostoalex]

But this assumes consistent buying in the past, while the original poster's statement assumed one-time buying binge once the jackpot hits the level to make it worthwhile.