On Sunday, lottery officials estimate the jackpot is already at $1.3 billion ahead of the next drawing on Wednesday night.
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That means a single victor would have the option of a lump-sum cash payout of an estimated $930 million.
The reason the Powerball Jackpot has reached a level of unfathomable absurdity centers on the simple fact that it is really impossible to win.
The more tickets you buy, the higher your chances, but buying all possible number combinations probably wouldn’t be smart.
One man, Richard Lustig, has won the lottery seven times.
Most recently, there was one $1 million Match 5 victor in Boston. You’d also have a 12 percent chance of sharing it with three people and a 6 percent chance of splitting your winnings with four others.
Winners of the top prize are paid in 30 annual installments or as a one-time, lump sum payment.
Roughly 114 prizes worth $1 million or more went unclaimed in 2015, according to Brett Jacobson. That was unusual, given the amount of interest.
Those who want to buy Powerball tickets online will find a host of companies offering to help them out, but in the sea of websites there is a lot of uncertainty about the whole process. The odds of matching all six numbers to win the jackpot are one in 292.2 million. Since then ticket sales have only taken off. It just won’t be you.
But some say they would put the money to more charitable use.
Romero said he believes his store is a popular spot for buying tickets because of its location in busy Union Station, where people are using Metro, Amtrak, VRE or MARC. No one except the lottery or their licensed retailers can sell a lottery ticket.
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In February 1992, an Australian consortium tried to corner a $24 million Virginia Lotto jackpot.
