As Australians dream of a life-changing win in Thursday night’s $100 million Powerball draw, a mathematics expert has delivered a blunt assessment of the best way to improve their odds.

The jackpot reached $100 million after last week’s draw ended without a division-one winner, creating the biggest Powerball prize seen in Australia for more than 12 months.

Although the windfall could completely change the winner’s future, the chance of claiming the entire jackpot remains just one in 134.5 million.

Should one ticket holder land the prize, it would rank as Australia’s equal third-biggest lottery win on record.

Professor John Croucher, a mathematics expert, said there is no secret formula or lucky system capable of shifting the odds. The only practical option, he said, is to purchase additional entries.

“Buy more tickets. There’s nothing else you can do to increase your chances,” he told Daily Mail on Tuesday.

He added that if another effective strategy existed, he would already be relying on it himself.

While unusual number combinations cannot improve the likelihood of winning, Professor Croucher said they may help a winner avoid splitting the jackpot with other players.

Common sequences and patterns, including 1, 2, 3, 4 or 1, 11, 21, 31, are more likely to be selected by multiple players.

If one of those familiar combinations were drawn, the resulting jackpot would therefore be more likely to be divided among several winners.

However, selecting numbers that appear less popular has no effect on the fundamental odds of winning the Powerball draw.

The professor also urged lottery players not to assume that past results offer clues about what will happen next.

Every number has exactly the same probability of being selected, whether it has appeared frequently in previous draws or has not been seen for some time.

“People talk about numbers that have not been drawn recently and describe them as overdue, suggesting they are more likely to appear. But that is not true,” he said.

“Likewise, some people believe a number that has appeared unusually often will not be drawn again soon. That is also incorrect.

“The machine has no memory. Like a poker machine, it does not remember previous results, so every draw begins afresh.”

Professor Croucher noted that the official Powerball website lists the numbers drawn most and least often, but stressed that those statistics do not make any number more or less likely to appear in the next draw.

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Since the current Powerball format began in 2018, the number nine has been drawn 103 times, making it the game’s most frequently selected Powerball number.

It is followed by 17, drawn 102 times, while seven and 11 have each appeared 101 times.

But the enormous odds haven’t stopped millions of Australians from buying tickets and dreaming of becoming overnight millionaires.

Among those who have struck it rich is an Adelaide man who became Australia’s biggest individual lottery winner in May 2024 after scooping the entire $150million Powerball jackpot.

The man bought his winning ticket on a whim while filling up his car and, despite his newfound fortune, still turned up to work the following morning.

‘I know it may sound crazy but I’m going to continue working. I’m at work today.’

Recalling the moment he discovered he had won, the man said he could barely contain his excitement.

‘I’ve never screamed so loud or jumped so high!’ he said, according to Powerball operator The Lott.

‘I actually had two tickets into last night’s draw. I looked at the clock last night and saw it was getting late and thought the draw should have been done by then.

‘So, I checked the first one and it came up with nothing, then I scanned the second one and it said $150 million.

The man said he planned to use his winnings to help loved ones and enjoy some of life’s luxuries.

‘I’ll buy a house, want to travel the world and I’ve got a family and friends I want to help,’ he said at the time.

But while some winners discover their newfound fortune almost immediately, others have no idea they are sitting on a life-changing sum.

A $100million Powerball prize is still unclaimed after a winning ticket was purchased at Bondi Junction Newsagency in Sydney’s eastern suburbs in June 2025.

Ccashier Grace Martino told Daily Mail the winner could have been anyone bar the regulars, who have all been asking about the result.

‘People come through all the time. It could be somebody who passed by; it could be someone who’s a backpacker; it could be a tourist.’

The Lott said the winner had made a costly mistake by failing to register their ticket, meaning officials were unable to contact them directly.

A baby who reportedly had not been seen for several weeks has been found dead in a motel room in Adelaide.

A 40-year-old man and a 42-year-old woman were taken into custody on Saturday before appearing by bedside hearing at Adelaide Magistrates Court on Monday.

Both were charged with criminal neglect and concealing human remains.

Emergency responders reportedly found incense burning in the room when they arrived to investigate the disturbing discovery on Saturday morning.

Police were called to the Tollgate Motel just before 10.30am, where they found the body of a baby boy believed to have been aged between six and seven months.

Investigators said the infant had been dead for “a period of time”.

South Australia Police said preliminary inquiries suggested the man and woman had been living at the motel after arriving in the state at the start of the year.

“They have not had contact with South Australian authorities since this time,” police said in a statement.

The Major Crime Investigation Branch is leading the police investigation, officers said.

The couple had apparently been staying at the motel for about a month. Other guests reportedly became concerned after the baby was not seen for several weeks.

Police do not believe the pair are originally from South Australia.

South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas said on Monday that neither the infant nor the family had previously been known to the state’s child protection authorities, while inquiries remained ongoing.

“Whenever a child or infant passes away, it is a tragedy beyond comprehension,” he said.

“I’m in a position to be able to advise this family and this child were not known to the South Australian Department of Child Protection, but there are still active inquiries underway across other agencies.”

Police Commissioner Grant Stevens said a post-mortem examination had been completed as detectives worked to establish what led to the baby’s death.

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“The post-mortem was completed yesterday. Our investigators have continued to work through it,” he said.

Commissioner Stevens declined to say whether more arrests were possible, explaining that it was too soon to comment on the developing case.

“This is a very sensitive ongoing investigation,” he said.

The commissioner also acknowledged the emotional toll investigations involving children can take on emergency services personnel.

‘It’s not just the family who are affected by this, it’s the responding police officers, it’s the detectives who work on the case, it’s the people that work in our health sector that have to manage those circumstances,’ he said.

‘People carry these incidents with them potentially for the rest of their lives.’

 It is understood that between 18 and 20 of the motel’s 39 rooms are occupied by long-term residents, with some having lived there for more than a decade.

Motel resident Jacqui Fricker, who moved into the motel in January, told Adelaide Now she was shocked by the news. 

Despite living just two doors away, the 55-year-old said she had neither seen nor heard the baby.

‘I hadn’t heard crying or anything,’ Ms Fricker, a mother-of-two who receives a disability pension, said.

‘You just don’t know, I suppose, what’s going on with other people … just a couple of doors down. Occasionally you hear people fighting … but not a lot, normally it’s fairly quiet,’ she said.

Ms Fricker said she first became aware something was wrong when she heard a man shouting shortly before 10.30am on Saturday. 

‘I peered out the window and saw that the police were here,’ she said.

‘That was the first hint of trouble, I didn’t hear anything prior to that. I didn’t think that would happen (here). There was just a big police presence all of a sudden.’

Three longtime friends were killed in a devastating nighttime boat crash on Michigan’s Lake St. Clair, while a critically injured survivor clung to a floating cushion and struggled toward shore in search of help.

Craig Miller, 52, Heidi Baldwin, 56, and Gerald Grzadzinski, 64, died when their boat was hit by another vessel on Wednesday night, October 7.

The crash happened near MacRay Harbor. The group’s black Formula Thunderbird was struck by a white Sea Ray Sundancer and later sank.

Rescue crews recovered the three victims at about 5 a.m. the next morning. They were pronounced dead at the scene.

Dawn Grzadzinski, Gerald’s wife, survived the wreck. She reportedly grabbed a cushion from the sinking boat and began swimming toward land.

She is still hospitalized as investigators work to determine what led to the fatal collision.

Friends say the victims shared a rare bond and belonged to a close-knit boating community that regularly spent weekends and holidays together on the water.

Jodi and Edward Wanket, both 54, were close to all three victims and often joined them for boating trips.

For Jodi, the sudden loss of three close friends has been nearly impossible to grasp.

“Losing one of them would be bad enough, but losing three of them all together at the same time is… it’s a lot,” she told The Detroit News. “It’s a lot.”

Baldwin, a St. Clair Shores mother and Air Force veteran, was among those killed. Her 15-year-old son, Zander, was the focus of her life.

Jodi had known Baldwin since they attended Anchor Bay High School, though their friendship became especially close about 12 years ago.

She remembered Baldwin as intensely loyal—someone who spoke her mind without hesitation and would go to extraordinary lengths for the people she loved.

Baldwin would “tell you exactly how it is,” Jodi said, while also being the kind of person who would “give you the shirt off her back.”

Although she was outspoken, Baldwin was relaxed by nature and treasured time spent with her friends.

“She was always laughing,” Jodi said. Baldwin’s teenage son, she added, was “her whole entire world.”

Baldwin ran a housecleaning business and was a familiar face among the friends who gathered on Lake St. Clair almost every weekend.

Funeral arrangements for the mother have not yet been finalized.

Grzadzinski, meanwhile, was a beloved boat mechanic from Chesterfield Township who was affectionately known to his friends as ‘Lenny.’

He had spent so much time navigating Lake St. Clair that his friends believed there was almost nobody who understood its waters better.

Jodi said Grzadzinski knew the lake ‘better than anybody out there.’

His passion for boating was so intense that the group would venture onto the water throughout the year, even during the colder months when ice threatened to make trips impossible.

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Edward Wanket said Wednesday evenings had become something of a tradition, with the group regularly piling aboard Grzadzinski’s boat and heading out for dinner.

‘He was just an awesome dude,’ Edward said of his friend.

Grzadzinski’s wife, Dawn, was the only person aboard the Thunderbird known to have survived the collision.

Edward said she later described the terrifying ordeal of escaping the sinking boat and attempting to reach safety.

According to his account, Dawn managed to find a cushion from one of the boat’s rear seats and used it to keep herself afloat.

She then began swimming, struggling through the water for an extended period before eventually reaching land.

Edward said she had initially been ‘going in the wrong direction.’

Despite the exhausting ordeal, she managed to make it ashore and seek help.

She remains in hospital recovering from the collision. Her precise injuries have not been disclosed.

No funeral date has yet been announced for her husband.

The third victim, Miller, was a hardworking electrician and devoted father of three from Macomb Township.

Friends remembered him as a relentlessly cheerful man who rarely seemed to have a bad word to say about anyone.

‘And he was just always smiling. I mean, he… was never mad at anybody, ever,’ Edward recalled.

Miller’s obituary paints a picture of a father whose children were the driving force behind his life.

He is survived by Tyler Switzer, Grant Miller and Ashleigh Miller, along with his father, stepfather, sister and brothers.

‘He took pride in being a father, coaching his children’s basketball, football, and softball teams, and creating lasting memories along the way,’ his obituary reads.

‘Known for being the life of the party, Craig had a special way of bringing people together and filling every gathering with laughter and fun.’

His family has set up a GoFundMe to help cover the financial burden left by his sudden death, including mortgage payments, household bills and other expenses.

‘Our hope is to relieve some of these burdens as we grieve, heal, and adjust to life without our dad,’ the fundraiser states.

Meanwhile, the Macomb County Sheriff’s Office is continuing its investigation into the collision.

Authorities have identified the driver of the white Sea Ray Sundancer involved in the crash and said that person is cooperating with detectives.

Investigators have not said what caused the boats to collide, and no criminal charges have been brought.

Breaking Bad cast members Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul and Dean Norris were among the first colleagues to publicly grieve RJ Mitte after news emerged Monday that the actor had died by suicide at age 34.

Cranston, 70, said he was “in deep despair” over the loss. In an emotional Instagram tribute, he wrote: “I’ll miss you, son.”

“RJ Mitte, my sweet son on Breaking Bad has died,” Cranston wrote alongside a photograph of the pair. “I met him when he was only 14 years old, when he was cast as Walter White Jr., a part he played with such joy and enthusiasm.”

Mitte was born with cerebral palsy, but Cranston said he never allowed the condition to limit him. “He never—ever—allowed that challenge to be an excuse for anything,” the actor wrote. “He met the demanding shooting schedule head-on with great determination.”

Cranston recalled that Mitte listened to guidance from his onscreen parents, Anna Gunn and Cranston, while occasionally choosing to learn lessons for himself. “He was one of the stars of a hit TV show—but still a kid,” he wrote.

“That kid was pretty raw when we started shooting the pilot in February of 2007, but little by little we watched him grow into a really fine actor,” Cranston added.

Cranston also highlighted Mitte’s work away from the screen. “He parlayed his experience on the show to be a vocal advocate for performers with disabilities, and was the head of a philanthropic organization with a focus on helping the disabled community,” he wrote. “All that promise and potential now is such a loss.”

“It is especially devastating to hear that he took his own life. Why?” Cranston continued. “We were texting each other just a few weeks ago—figuring out when we could meet for lunch. I don’t know if that lunch would have changed his future…”

“But I do know that I loved him, and thoroughly enjoyed being with him throughout the years on the series, and after the spotlight on Breaking Bad dimmed,” Cranston wrote. “I’ll miss you, son.”

“I am at a loss,” Paul, 47, told The Hollywood Reporter. “I am heartbroken over this news. RJ, I love you my friend. You will be missed. And to whoever happens to be reading this, please know you are loved, and you are not alone. Always remember that.”

Norris, 63, shared his shock and sadness in an X post in the wake of hearing the tragic news.

Norris said he had only just learned of Mitte’s death while working. “Oh my God! Was working, just found out about RJ,” he said. “I am heartbroken. Though RJ didn’t play my TV son, I always looked out for him as a young kid on set.”

“He was a sweetheart of a young man and will be greatly missed,” Norris continued. “This is so heartbreaking, I can’t believe it. Thinking of him and his family.”

A county official confirmed to TMZ that Mitte, best known for playing Walter White Jr. on Breaking Bad, died Monday in Texas. A death investigation remains ongoing, while a separate source told the publication that his death was a suicide.

The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul and Anna Gunn for additional comment.

Mitte appeared in 56 episodes of Breaking Bad between 2008 and 2013. His other credits included The Recall and The Guardians of Justice (Will Save You.).

Elsewhere, Oscar-winning actress Marlee Matlin wrote, ‘My heart is shattered. There will never be another like RJ Mitte. You will always have a place in my heart. RIP.’

DC Studios head James Gunn said in a post on Threads, ‘RJ was a really sweet guy. I am so sorry to hear this.’ 

Moonrise Kingdom star Jared Gilman said on X that news of Mitte’s death was ‘beyond heartbreaking.’

He added: ‘His work on breaking bad was incredible and I think a big reason why ozymandias had a 10/10 IMDb rating was due to his performance being so powerfully shattering. just the f***ing worst news ever. RIP.’

Vincent Martella, of Phineas and Ferb, said of Mitte: ‘What a kind and wonderful person. 

‘Devastating. So young and genuinely nice to everyone he spoke to. This is truly awful. Sending love to his family.’ 

Mitte was diagnosed with cerebral palsy (CP) when he was three, and he went on to advocate for actors and those working in the entertainment industry with disabilities. 

Actor Eric West said in a post on X, ‘Wow, this absolutely broke my heart. We used to hang out during NYFW, and he was always such a kind soul. RJ Mitte was so talented and gone far too soon. Rest peacefully.’ 

Mitte’s representative told TMZ Monday: ‘It is with profound sadness we share the tragic passing of beloved actor, philanthropist, and passionate disability rights advocate RJ Mitte.

‘RJ Mitte was best known for his role as Walter “Flynn” White Jr on AMC’s critically acclaimed, award-winning series Breaking Bad. 

‘Drawing from his own experience living with cerebral palsy, Mitte brought authenticity to the role and built a platform on disability awareness and inclusion. 

‘Beyond entertaining friends and family around the world, he served as an ambassador for United Cerebral Palsy and Shriners Children’s.’

The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for Mitte and the Brownsville Police Department for further comment. 

The Emmy-winning series Breaking Bad ran from 2008 to 2013 and garnered widespread acclaim from both fans and critics worldwide.

It followed Walter White (Bryan Cranston), a terminally ill high school chemistry teacher who creates a meth empire with Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul), his inept former student.

Mitte’s shock death comes a year after the actor got engaged to his girlfriend Kennedy Suarez on her 30th birthday.

‘I’m thrilled to have found my person, my partner in life who makes me want to be better, no matter what we’re doing,’ Mitte told People. 

He gushed: ‘Kennedy is my everything, and I can’t wait to officially start our life together and see what adventures life takes us on next.’

Mitte proposed at the 56th annual Dia del Sol 2025 benefit in Carlsbad, California. The fundraising event benefited United Cerebral Palsy of San Diego, for which he was an ambassador.

Following the engagement, Suarez took to Instagram to write: ‘My 30th felt like a fairytale…. I have the man of my dreams by my side & we are doing what we love most – helping others.’ 

Mitte and Suarez lived in Brownsville, Texas, and the actor was president of The Mitte Foundation, his family’s Austin-based charity.

The Foundation rejuvenates and funds South Texas-based marginalized communities.

CP is a group of disorders that affect movement, posture and balance due to abnormal brain development or damage.

Symptoms range from muscle stiffness and poor motor control to difficulties with balance and coordination.

During his life, Mitte called for larger representation of disabled actors on television. 

‘Representation is everything, as we’ve seen over the last ten years with the growth of representation on television,’ he told WUWF in 2023. 

‘Having positive influences of individuals with disabilities, not just cerebral palsy, but all of them, changes the mindset. TV is something that we all share; we all watch. TV really brings communities together in a way that you might not realize through social outlet. 

‘I think that can really inspire individuals, and that can do wonders for confidence and self-esteem. If you see a character that’s going through the same struggle as you, and they’re succeeding, and in your life you may not be, it can help inspire you to get that extra push,’ he added.

In 2016, Mitte described how much he would ‘love’ to turn on the TV to watch a disabled person discuss something ‘that doesn’t just focus on their impairment.’

‘We know lots of progress is being made, but the industry must do more to help disabled people work both in front of and behind the camera,’ he told the Irish Examiner, according to Variety. ‘During the Paralympics there will be more disabled people than ever before on TV, but this shouldn’t be something that just happens every four years.’

‘I would love to switch on my TV and see a disabled person talking about something they are genuinely interested in or acting out a part that doesn’t just focus on their impairment.’ 

Mitte also credited his disability for taking him in the direction he went down:  ‘I wouldn’t be in the position I am in today without my disability,’ he said. ‘I utilized everything I know about living with cerebral palsy for my role in Breaking Bad.’ 

In 2019, five years after Breaking Bad, Mitte admitted he still missed being a part of the show’s cast.

‘That’s going to follow me ’til the day I die,’ he told The Sydney Morning Herald as he reflected on his time on the hit AMC series.

The role took Mitte’s career to a whole new level and ‘opened a lot of doors’ for him.

‘Breaking Bad put me on the map,’ he told The Independent in 2021. ‘You’re only talking to me today because of it. None of my projects would exist without that show and the opportunity it gave me. It really opened a lot of doors for me. I wouldn’t have the media profile and the following that I have today without Walter White Jr. I would just be some kid who lives in Texas.’ 

In what appears to be one of his last interviews, Mitte reflected on the end of Breaking Bad and how the show set an ‘unobtainable’ bar with The Joe Vulpis Podcast.  

‘I don’t think it was [the] end. That was really the end of Heisenberg’s journey but I don’t think that was the end of Skyler, Walt, and Holly’s journey,’ Mitte said.

‘I think there’s a lot of unanswered questions there that for them, will probably never be answered. And so I think there’s still a big step for the White family.’

‘There’s more to be told,’ the interviewer said.

‘There’s always more to be told,’ he added. ‘But you got to tell it right!’ he said. ‘Again, if something happens in the future with the show… the fans control that, really, truly, like, the fans control what continues to get made.’

‘I think it’d go right to the top,’ the interviewer said. ‘Top of Netflix, top of wherever it’s streaming.’

‘I want to top Breaking Bad,’ he said. ‘That’s the hardest… I set a bar for myself as a young man that is kind of unobtainable. And I tell people, I say, look, it’s a long way down from the top of the mountain.’

Mitte hails from Mississippi and was six years old when he found out he was adopted. 

‘I was about six when I was told that I was adopted,’ he told the Sydney Morning Herald in 2019. ‘My stepbrother heard my mom and my then-stepdad talking and said to me, “You are adopted. They don’t love you.” I didn’t believe him, but my parents confirmed that I was. I was like, “Okay.”’ 

‘I’ve never felt the need to track my birth mother,’ he said. ‘Medically, I’d like to know my family history, but until I feel that need, I have enough family and friends. I don’t need any more.’

Mitte’s mother chose to adopt him as she believed she would be unable to have her own children due to an ovarian cancer diagnosis. 

‘The reason Mom adopted me was because she’d had ovarian cancer and was told she couldn’t have children. Then, magically, 11 years later, my sister Lacianne came along.’

Mitte’s mother lost her job after a car accident left her partially paralyzed for six years, and he did all he could to keep their family afloat. 

‘A few months later, Mom was in a car accident and was partially paralysed for six years. After the accident, she was fired from her job. She was a single parent, and we had just moved into a new place in Louisiana and feared we would lose everything.

‘I mowed lawns, picked up stuff and took it places. I did whatever I could to scrape cash together. I have devoted my life to my mom and my sister, and I still take care of them today.’

If you or someone you know needs help, please call or text the confidential 24/7 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline in the US on 988. There is also an online chat available at 988lifeline.org