For #1 You can beat those odds by going to Vagas. It's not hard to get a 1 in 10 chance of 9.5x return or a 1 in 100 chance of a 95x return. What you want is a 1 in 3 chance of a 30x return within 5 years.
PS: This is also why most VC funds make so little money for the investors.