Where did you get that from? I am pretty sure that is completely untrue. If you take the lump sum they take about $530M and then taxes they take 25% upfront with another 14.6% or so due at tax time. If you have state and city tax that would be due later also. Anyone in NY or NJ should quickly get an address in PA if they win, no state tax on lottery there.
I'll tell you one thing I would never fuckin do. this lame ass bullshit on popping up on social media. "I bought 1 powerball ticket and I am in need of attention. share my shitty ass photo and I will ensure you get some of the money in the unbelievably unlikely scenario that I win." I'm much more likely to ask people to share a photo of myself doing a line of blow off a strippers ass. "this stripper is getting more money than any of you fuckers. share because I need more attention for winning the big one before I party myself to death!"
I would also say, if you plan on giving family some of the winnings have the attorney draw up paperwork before claiming. The paperwork would have the percentage of the winning they are getting. Say brothers and sisters are getting 1% or $8.68M if you are going lump sum, include all the names and percentages and have everyone sign the document. This way they only pay the taxes 1 time, if you claim and then give them a gift you are paying the taxes and then they pay a 40% gift tax.
There are 290 million possible combinations of numbers you can play, at $2 each you can guarantee yourself a winning ticket for $580 million. If the Jackpot gets to $1.4 billion like it's projected, you can actually break even or better by doing that. If he wanted to be a massive dick, this is a golden opportunity for him. His net worth is over $4 billion, but I don't know how one goes about the process of buying 300 million lottery tickets. Of course you're risking someone else winning and you taking a massive hit by sharing the jackpot.
Powerball now at $1.5 billion with a cash value of $930 million. We got one day left...That cash value is going to be a $1 billion dollars!
Considering the Jets are worth over $2 billion now you guys need to think of some nobler ideas than buying the team. If I survive the obligatory post lottery world party tour, I'd buy a full size handmade replica of the largest Viking longship and have it delivered to and put together in my weightlifting gym in the middle of the night. also have a moat and drawbridge put in around the gym. I'd fill my best friend's house and property entirely with potatoes because he's Irish and I hate him. I'd hire the best coaches and spend all my time training, then I'd talk mad smack to Dana White so I can be the richest dude to get his ass kicked in the ufc. I'd buy a huge weapons cache and bury it in the middle of a desert Terminator 2 style. And I would buy a pet great white shark and have a frickin laser beam implanted into his head. Damn, I'd still have like 800 million. Maybe I'll just give it to my dog.
There's also the question of how you would even accomplish this. It's not like you can show up at the local gas station with a brinks truck, some wheel barrows to haul the money in and tell the cashier to go ahead and play every combination.
They should add an option "every combo". The payoffs can be calculated for the jackpot + # of 5 numbers + 4 numbers etc. This may then bring in a syndicate. Absent this, its utterly impractical.
After writing off the $590M+ on your taxes and then paying taxes on the balance you would clear about $150M if you live in NYC. Hardly worth gambling almost $600M on and of course as you said, if someone else wins with you it is a $140M loss, 2 others hit and it's a $290M loss.
You're underestimating how much of an egotistical dick Donald Trump is. Is it worth it for an average wealthy person? Absolutely not. Is it worth it for him, to get the satisfaction of "Breaking News: Donald Trump wins Powerball" on every news station? That's the better question.
You are guaranteed 25 tickets that have all 5 numbs without the powerball so thats 25 million there. you will have 10 million (290mm/26 tickets) with at least the powerball--that gets you at least 4 bucks each. Need a mathematician to figure out all the consolation rev for 4 balls +power = $50,000, 3 plus power, etc. , 3 numbers only get you 7 bucks each. You're probably looking at nearly 100 million in consolation prizes. There's a multiplier option too that may make sense to do in this scenario. After all this, it still looks like a bad bet at 1.3 billion.