When people say something is as rare as “winning the lottery,” they really mean it because no matter how hard you try to game the system, it’s still 99.99% pure luck. Some people play it safe by buying one or two lottery tickets every few weeks. Some people try to “invest” by pouring money into their lucky numbers. And geniuses try to figure out algorithms.
No matter who wins, one person will have a lot of money to waste. Here are nine real-life winners who won a windfall that no one would have written down on their bingo card.
Jonathan Vargas – wrestling soap opera
Jonathan Vargas won the $35.3 million Powerball jackpot when he was 19 years old. Not a bad start to his adult life, right? It would have been a great start if Vargas hadn’t immediately decided that the world needed a women’s wrestling league featuring comedy sketches. This is how Wrestlicious, a Tampa-based project funded by his winnings, was born. From a 19-year-old’s perspective, it really makes sense. After its first season, the show became a pop culture curiosity but never became a huge hit.