Powerball at $500 million

[Will]

Not that any mustachians would play, but if you were, and you won the big jackpot, would you go for the lump sum or the 30 year payout?  Almost $1 million a month every month for 30 years...

http://www.kptv.com/story/20196263/powerball-jackpot-now-500-million

[lauren_knows]

Speak for yourself.  We save 50% of our income or more, and I bought a couple tickets for myself and threw $2 into the office pool.

Definitely take the lump sum. From what I understand, you cannot will the annuity to family, so if you get hit by a bus on day 1, it was all for naught.

If I won as part of the office pool (a much smaller sum), I'd simply stop my current job and live the rest of my days pretty much as I do now, with a little more travel involved.

If I won the whole enchilada by myself, I'd have to figure out some creative ways to spend the money on various charities and such.  I think at most, I'd want a small residence in a few international cities that I would split my time in, and not much else.  I'm not much of a "buy things" kind of guy anyway.

[Karl]

If I played (NEVER, since I also teach statistics from time to time), then I would take the lump sum.  I would use it (in its entirety) to set up a nonprofit corporation aimed at supporting research-based financial education (or some other worthwhile cause, such as free martial arts classes for children in poor communities--punch to the face!).  As a nonprofit donation, I believe that this would avoid the suggested tax issues.  I would also try to heave myself hired as the director, at my current salary level.

If you have this much money, why pay it in taxes when there are so many ways to make the world a better place.

[tooqk4u22]

I wonder if you could put the winnings directly into a charitable trust, which would avoid any taxes upfront but leave it within your sole control.  Afterall that is what Warren Buffett did with his wealth so that he can avoid any estate taxes. 

[c]

My life long ambition has been to live in a hotel. I love hotel rooms; they have only the essentials, someone makes your bed every day and if you have enough money they're conveniently located. Conveniently located to what you ask.  Who cares, they just are.

The cats would be an issue as one of them hates to leave the apartment.

[okits]

If I played (NEVER, since I also teach statistics from time to time)

Despite the statistics of it, I contribute to the office pool and buy the rare lotto ticket. It's a couple of bucks worth of entertainment, and introduces the tiniest element of randomness into my life (of the happy "tomorrow could be the last day I ever set foot in a cubicle" variety.)

I figure if you don't count on seeing the money spent on lottery again, you've got a good grasp of the intangibles you're paying for.  (Obviously it's a non-necessity but if you're not in a debt emergency there's bound to be a few of those in your life.)

[mindaugas]

I don't play either ...

I'd take the lump sum and pay off my debt and most of my relatives.
Invest most of it except to do some fun things:
Move to Maui
Learn to sail, buy a sailboat.
Fight a shark and a bear with just a hatched because the odds are in my favor, I won the lottery.
Go to space.
Convince the gov't to fund my electricity through lightening project.
Learn to create massive lightening thunderstorms for profit!
become evil genius, fight my super hero son in an epic final battle

[grantmeaname]

I'd mostly use it for philanthropy. The biggest economic change I'd like to see here in the midwest would be fast, effective rail travel between major midwest cities, something a sum like $100M could really do a lot to advance. Any other giving I did domestically would be to groups like the Nature Conservancy and the Archaeological Conservancy. Like MMM, I'm struck by the conclusion that money goes a lot further overseas, though.

[c]

I checked my ticket today at one of those machines and I won $4. Ha!

[kolorado]

Hubby and I were closely following the rise of the jackpot(how could you not? The week after the election it gave people something to talk about). As a surprise, he bought me a single ticket on the the day of the drawing. I had never played the lottery before. It cost $3. We matched the Powerball so we "won" $4. :D It was pretty fun, even before we won anything. Not something I would do regularly but it felt nice getting into the public excitement about something.
We don't celebrate holidays that everyone else does and we never seem to support the politicians and policies everyone else does and we have different philosophical and religious beliefs than most people do so it's rare I get to feel like "one of the bunch". :)

[James]

I've never played myself, but I throw a dollar in the work pool just to be part of the team.

Lump sum, pay off house, invest a million for retirement, invest the rest in developing good enterprise in third world countries that I think will help them in the long term and which may or may not pay off financially over time.