The record-breaking Powerball jackpot could grow yet more before Wednesday’s drawing if ticket sales continue to exceed expectations.
Advertisement
A person’s odds of winning the jackpot are about 1 in 292.2 million.
The estimated jackpot for the Wednesday draw is up to $1.5 billion with sales going up thanks to online lottery agents.
Whoever wins will have to pay 39.6 percent of the prize in federal income taxes, and any state taxes.
However, if the victor takes the annuity, the $1.5 billion would be paid out over 30 years.
Powerball tickets are sold in 44 states, Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands.
If someone picks all five numbers on the white balls but not the red Powerball, they’ll win $1 million.
If you go for it, and your ticket qualifies for one of the non-jackpot prizes, you’ll get to multiply it.
Back in October, the Multi-State Lottery Association made changes to the 23-year-old Powerball drawing.
The vast majority of lottery players will walk away with nothing after tonight’s drawing, but the real victor is the state of Texas.
The biggest lottery prize in MI is a $337 million Powerball jackpot, won by a Lapeer man in August 2012.
Those tickets – one of which was bought in Orange County’s Dana Point – will bring a consolation prize of nearly $780,000 each.
It’s not played in Canada, but Canadians can, and have, been buying tickets.
“I just want to really make sure before I go and sit in line again to buy tickets … that I really can win”, Yuen told CTV Vancouver.
Some are buying a bunch of tickets, trying to improve their odds of winning, but according to statisticians, the more tickets you buy, the more money you lose.
Advertisement
The crush of customers gobbled up all of the Powerball tickets by 2 p.m., so King said she would be driving to Buffalo, N.Y., on Tuesday night to get more tickets.
