Texas Jackpot Wizard Joan Ginther Won Lottery Four Times in a 17-Year Span, Earned $20.4 Million

Some might believe mystery woman Joan Ginther was the luckiest gal in the world, but others think the Stanford PhD may have turned her knowledge of math and statistics into a secret formula — hitting the jackpot in four lotteries over 17 years and winning a whopping $20.4 million.

From 1993 to 2010, the Texas jackpot wizard, who never wed and was childless, scooped up a fortune winning $5.4 million in a 1993 lottery draw, $2 million in a 2006 Holiday Millionaire scratch-off, $3 million from a 2008 Millions and Millions ticket and her final and biggest strike — $10 million from a $50 scratch-off ticket in 2010.

All her wins were in Texas and two winning tickets were bought at the same convenience store in Bishop.

Experts say the chance of winning that many lotteries in that time are an astronomical one in 18 times 10 to the power of 24!

Some wonder if Ginther, who taught college math in California, had cracked an algorithm to beat the games.

Salt Hill Consulting statistician Alan Salzberg told London’s Daily Mail newspaper that he believes she spent some of her first jackpot playing games often to increase her chances of winning and also played games with better odds.

“She probably figured out a little bit and she also probably spent a lot of money to win these,” Salzberg theorizes.

Meanwhile, Ginther reportedly lived and dressed modestly, helping others with her wealth, but her big extravagance was long holidays in Spain.

“You would never know she was a millionaire,” says longtime friend and beautician Fran Wooley, who met Ginther after her 1993 win.

“I knew she had been playing the same numbers for years and years and years the first time she won,” says Wooley.

“She bought tons of those and she gave them to everyone, too.”

Generous Ginther showered her winnings on others.

After her father died, she gave his house to the man who had taken care of the yard, says Wooley, adding: “She put many kids through college. If she knew someone was in distress financially, she would try to help. She was very generous in my life. She helped us buy our first house. She had put a savings bond in my name.”

When Wooley’s house burned down in 2011, Ginther deposited money in her checking account.

Cat lover Ginther taught college math in California, where she reportedly fell in love with a trucker, moved to Las Vegas in 2001 and in 2014, returned to Texas, moving into a high-rise near San Antonio’s River Walk.

She kept a low profile before her death at 77 of heart disease on April 12, 2024.

Neighbor Judy Lenard recalls Ginther was the “sweetest, funniest lady in our building.”