By Tim Binnall
Authorities in the Philippines are calling for an investigation after a staggering 433 people all somehow managed to pick the winning numbers on the same lottery game. The very weird turn of events reportedly occurred this past Saturday when the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) held their Grand Lotto with an expected prize of around $4 million. Stunningly, when the winning numbers of 9, 18, 27, 36, 45, and 54 were drawn, it was determined that there were a whopping 433 people who had each correctly chosen them. As one might imagine, the shocking result raised suspicions throughout the Philippines that the game was not on the level.
As explained on Twitter by mathematician Dr Guido David, the odds of 433 people all picking the same winning nine numbers is a jaw-dropping "1 out of 1 followed by 1,224 zeros." That seemingly impossible outcome has led some officials in the Philippines to demand a probe into Saturday night's lottery game which one politician dubbed "strange and unusual." For their part, the PCSO insists that the entire process surrounding the drawing was overseen by various observers who can attest that there were no shenanigans involved and issued a statement which read in part "lottery is a game of chance, nothing is definite and it is uncontrollable." As for the 433 winners, they will each take home a share of around $9,000 from the $4 million prize.