ever since the economy slumped, lottery sales rose. in new york, state lottery sales shot up $7.8 billion this year. and in tennessee, instant game sales were up $8 million. i feel lucky. reporter: but is it worth it? is the chance at a fabulous financial future worth the money you risk losing? in reality you have a better chance at becoming a celebrity, winning an oscar, or winning an olympic gold medal, than hitting it big in the lottery. still, people play and play often. these scratch-offs are extremely popular. okay, so i didn t win. but what if you could win without ever playing? say you spend $20 a week on the lottery. but instead of laying the lottery, you invest $20 a week in a modest s&p 500 mutual fund, which averages a 10% interest rate over 20 years. in 2030, you d have $61,842.08. okay, that doesn t exactly put you in this category.