For 36 consecutive draws, a Powerball jackpot has evaded lottery players.
So, the 37th time may be the charm?
Standing at $825 million, the current jackpot is poised to be the fifth-most valuable prize ever awarded in a U.S. lottery drawing. And the longer the game goes without a grand prize winner, the larger the payout will grow.
The $825 million prize is for winners who choose to take their riches through annuity, paid annually over 29 years. Nearly all winners opt for cash, which is currently estimated at $410.2 million.
The next Powerball drawing will take place 9:59 p.m. Saturday.
In the previous drawing on Wednesday, one Illinois resident became $1 million richer after capturing another prize in the game.
According to Illinois Lottery officials, the winning ticket was purchased at Riverside Mobile, located in the 500 block of Main Street in Sycamore.
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“A gentleman, who is one of our regular customers, popped into our store early this morning and exclaimed ‘you guys sold me a million dollar-winning Powerball ticket – thank you! Thank you,’” store manager Betsy Byrd told the Lottery.
The gas station will receive a bonus of $10,000 after selling the ticket, according to officials. The prize is the sixth Powerball prize of $1 million or more to be won in Illinois this year.
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In order to win a $1 million prize, a player must match all five numbers, but fail to match the Powerball number. The odds of doing so are 1-in-11,688,054.
According to the Powerball website, a total of six $1 million-winning tickets were sold in the last drawing on Wednesday.
Officials say another winning ticket worth $50,000 was sold in the state of Illinois this week. The winner of that ticket has not yet been identified.
To win $50,000, a player must match four numbers and the Powerball number.
