The numbers alone sound like nonsense when you hear them. Winning the lottery once is rare enough. But winning it four times? That sits somewhere between doubt and just plain fantasy. Yet lucky Joan Ginther did exactly that, pulling off a statistical miracle between 1993 and 2010 that still makes probability experts doubt their research and life choices to this day. Across four separate wins, the former math professor quietly collected $20.4 million. No flashy press tours followed. No champagne lifestyle. Instead, Ginther slipped back into ordinary life, leaving behind a story that only grew stranger the longer she stayed quiet about it all… (Pictures: AP/Dignity Memorial)
Ginther was no casual ticket buyer, though. Let’s be clear about that. She held a PhD from Stanford and once taught college mathematics in California, giving her a deeper understanding of probability and odds than most people scratching away at gas station counters. Still, even experts struggled to explain her madcap winning streak. She landed $5.4 million in 1993, followed by $2 million in 2006, $3 million in 2008, then a staggering $10 million in 2010. Her biggest prize came from a $50 scratch-off, with two of those winning tickets being bought at the same gas station in her Texas hometown, Daily Mail reports. (Picture: AP)
Despite the whispers, nobody ever accused her of cheating. The Texas Lottery Commission shut that idea down a good few years ago now. Ginther herself never claimed to have cracked the code, found a loophole or worked out the system. But did she do one of these things…? She refused interviews and avoided attention, allowing theories to spiral without much in the way of correction. That silence only fed the myth. How does one person beat odds that experts compare to multiplying every grain of sand on Earth by eighteen? Ginther never answered that question publicly and seemed happy letting people argue it out without her. A smart move, perhaps. (Picture: dignitymemorial.com)
One statistician believes the explanation sits somewhere between genius and persistence. Alan Salzberg of Salt Hill Consulting told the Mail: ‘The math of lotteries isn’t that hard. I don’t think you need a Ph.D.’ He dismissed divine intervention too, adding: ‘I doubt it was the hand of God here, and I doubt she spent a tiny amount of money to get these winnings.’ His conclusion was less magical. ‘It’s somewhere in between. She probably figured out a little bit and she also probably spent a lot of money to win these.’ (Picture: Getty Images)
Salzberg believes Ginther reinvested early winnings into frequent play, choosing games with slightly better odds and timing her purchases carefully. Rural locations mattered, he said, since fewer players meant less competition. Jackpot size mattered too, since bigger prizes attracted more buyers. If Ginther was selective and relentless, the impossible becomes merely improbable. Still, none of that explains why she walked away from the spotlight entirely after 2010. She declined interviews, avoided publicity and let curiosity harden into pure legend while she lived quietly out of sight, enjoying the fruits of her fortune. (Picture: Getty Images)
Those who knew her paint a fascinating picture of the woman. Ginther never married and had no children, but friends say she poured her money into people rather than possessions. She paid college fees for children she knew, gave away homes and quietly covered other folks’ emergencies. Long-time friend Fran Wooley recalled Ginther playing the same numbers for years and being out of the country when she won her first jackpot. Pictured: Sun Bae, owner of the Times Market, where Ginther won $10 million on a $50 scratch-off ticket. (Picture: AP)
Wooley met Ginther in 1993 at her hair salon, shortly after that first big win. They became close friends. Ginther tutored Wooley through college without taking payment and helped her buy her first home. ‘She was good to everybody,’ Wooley said. ‘If she knew someone in distress financially, she would try to help.’ After Wooley’s house burned down in 2011, unexplained deposits appeared in her bank account. Ginther even offered to buy her a car, an offer Wooley declined. (Picture: AP)
Despite her wealth, Ginther didn’t stand out in a crowd. ‘You would never know she was a millionaire,’ Wooley said. ‘She did not look like she had money. I think she did that to blend in. She was very down to earth.’ She wore simple t-shirts and pants, spent months in Spain and lived without obvious luxury. She moved to Las Vegas in 2001, later returning to Texas and settling near San Antonio’s Riverwalk. Ginther died peacefully at 77 in April 2024. ‘Sweetest and funniest lady in our building!! You will be missed, my dear,’ wrote neighbor Judy Lenard. Her estate remains tied up in probate, her final numbers still unknown. (Picture: Getty Images)Add as preferred source