Here’s a wild story.

Back in May, a mystery group showed up in Montana and thought, “Why not buy hundreds of thousands of lottery tickets and guarantee ourselves a payday?” Their target? A $1.6 million jackpot from the Montana Cash game.

Yes, not Powerball. Not Mega Millions. Montana Cash.

This wasn’t someone casually picking up a few tickets at the grocery store. This group spent around $600,000 on tickets, likely with help from a retailer who could push through such a massive order.

And it worked — sort of.

They ended up with about $1.39 million before taxes. After state and federal cuts (about 43%), their total came to roughly $794K. Subtract the half a million spent on tickets, and that’s around $194K in profit. Not bad for a weekend gamble.

But here’s the twist: they didn’t even buy every possible number combination. They covered only about half. So this wasn’t a guaranteed win — it was closer to a coin flip disguised as a clever strategy. They could have easily walked away with nothing.

And, just to make things more interesting, another Montana local also hit the jackpot with a single $1 ticket, splitting part of the prize. Which is pretty ironic.

Why the Lottery Is Concerned

The Montana Lottery wasn’t thrilled. Officials argued that it felt “unfair to Montanans” who had been building the jackpot over time. Translation: locals don’t like it when outside groups swoop in and walk away with the prize.

So the state is pushing new rules:

• No more “bulk buys” (defined as 5% or more of all possible ticket combinations in a game).
• Retailers caught helping groups could lose their licenses.
• And winnings tied to bulk purchases could be denied altogether.

In short, Montana doesn’t want to become the place where well-funded groups can overwhelm the system.

The Bigger Picture

This kind of thing isn’t new. Texas saw a $95 million Lotto buyout in 2023 that sent shockwaves through the industry. Many states reacted by banning courier services or tightening rules, but often without solving the real issue: unlimited ticket sales.

Montana, at least, seems to be focusing directly on the bulk-buying practice rather than punishing couriers. It’s a more practical approach.

Because the truth is, if the math shows there’s money to be made, someone with enough cash will always try it. It’s human nature. Systems with loopholes will always attract people willing to exploit them.

The Takeaway

The Montana Lottery says it’s about “fair play.” But in reality, it’s about protecting the appearance of fairness.

Because whether you buy one ticket or 600,000, the odds don’t care. For most players, it’s still a long shot. The only difference is that bulk buyers remind everyone how tilted the system really is.

So yes, you’re still facing steep odds. But at least now, the rules may stop outsiders with deep pockets from stacking the deck further.