When people say it’s as rare as “winning the lottery,” they mean that no matter how hard you try to game the system, it’s still 99.99% pure luck. Some people play it safe and buy one or two tickets every few weeks. Others try to “invest” by betting on lucky numbers. The smartest people spend their time cracking algorithms.
No matter what happens to the winners, there will always be someone who will squander their fortune. Here are nine real-life winners who used their fortunes in ways no one has ever used their bingo cards.
Jonathan Vargas — Wrestling Soap Opera
Jonathan Vargas won the $35.3 million Powerball jackpot when he was just 19 years old. Not a bad start to adult life, right? It would have been the perfect start if I hadn’t immediately decided that the world needed a women’s wrestling league that included comedic acts. Thus was born Wrestlicious, a Tampa-based project he funded with prize money. From a 19-year-old’s perspective, it makes sense. After its first season, the show became a pop culture curiosity, but wasn’t exactly a hit.